Escaping From Fluffy
by Super Robot Malinarlen
Summary: Due to an unspoken family debt, Dawn was raised from birth to be 'friends' with the neighbors' uncontrollable idiot son. "I want to get out of here," she mutters and dreams. Barry, though, just wants her attention! Scarfshipping
1. Chapter 1: Protect

_Ah! This morning sunlight– it makes me feel so energetic!_

Barry slammed his window wide open, flailing his skinny arms and nearly falling out.

The hyperactive blond boy caught sight of Dawn in her house across the street. Though it was an awkward angle, he could always peek into her bedroom if he hung out his window far enough. Fortunately for him, the navy blue-haired girl was there sitting and watching TV.

"Oh! DAWN!" Barry screamed uncontrollably. Jumping up and down, he blasted her name and threw cans and garbage from his window in an attempt to get her attention.

The girl slowly rose to her feet... and closed her curtain.

Barry tilted his head sideways, confused._ Just what is she watching that's so interesting?_ he wondered. Hurrying away from the window, and running and flipping on his bedroom TV, he began watching the only channel available in their small town.

"Hmm..." Barry held his chin in concentration. _Is this some kind of cooking show?_ _But there's this old man talking about going on a journey._

Though the boy tried to concentrate, his attention faded as rapidly as his feet fidgeted. "Ah! What is this show supposed to be about?" Pressing his face to the screen, despite many warning from others not to do so, Barry looked into the TV and glared as if he could actually talk to the man.

_Ah! I remember now. That's Professor Rowan!_

"Now young future trainers–" the man on-screen said; "–go on, leap into the world of pokemon!"

* * *

"That concludes our special program..." The TV announcer rambled on. Dawn sat silently in front of her TV set, legs folded.

"Hnn..." she muttered, scratching her chest, "Sure would be nice... To get out of here..."

"See you next week, same time, same channel!" a cheerful, female announcer spoke, "Thank you for watching, and now a word from our sponsors!" A catchy pop song immediately played with a squeaky-voiced singer.

Dawn rattled her empty pork rind package. "Ah..."_ I'm all out..._

Glimpsing into the bag silently, full of depression, Dawn's self-absorbed hunger was cut short by the frenzied stomping of someone running up her stairs. Knowing what was coming, her lungs froze.

Barry barreled into the room, panting and huffing. "There you are!" he yelled– his hair breathing along with him.

Dawn looked away, trying to hide her dismayed expression._ A sprightly little devil with big hair,_ she thought;_ His golden locks deceptively hide his demon horns._

"Oi. I've been here the whole time," Dawn remarked, regaining her usual poker face.

_He's the lone curse I was born to bear... The bane of my existence and feller of my sanity._

_I call him 'Fluffy.' The destroyer of worlds._

"Hey, Dawn! Did you just see the TV? Huh? Huh? Did you?" Barry dove across the floor at her, getting in her face. "Sure you did!"

The girl narrowed her eyes– her blood pulse quickening._ Rage... subside..._

As usual, Dawn expertly hid her anger behind a calm sheet of ice, and she just as easily folded her arms to prepare herself for the ensuing onslaught of Barry's babbling. "Hn." She nodded stoically, listening to him chattering at speeds near incomprehensible.

"–So if we ask him, I bet he'd give us some pokemon!" Barry concluded, standing up and flexing. "Oh, hey!" He ran over to her desk and slammed his hands down on her keyboard. "Is this a new PC?...!"

Dawn shot him a mortified glower– a fallen face that said, 'Please don't touch that. I can't afford another one.' Oh, for how she greatly feared Fluffy's destructive powers.

Barry looked at her, dumbfounded, as if to say 'Wha? Why so upset?'

_Why do you look so surprised? _Dawn raged inside; _You blew up my last five computers, I want that to stop!_

"Uh... Where was I?" Barry pondered aloud.

Dawn went limp in relief. _He's distracted again. Good. My PC is safe... for now._

"Oh, right, right!" Barry waved his arms, "We're going to see Professor Rowan and get some pokemon. I'll be waiting outside. Ok, Dawn? If you're late, I'm fining you ten million pokedollars!" And he stomped back down the stairs.

Dawn gazed out her window, observing the garbage heap Barry had made outside earlier._ But first, someone should fine you for littering..._ Walking down the stairs after her tormentor, her mother suddenly ran up to her.

"Dawn! Barry already _left_..." The woman panicked with an added undertone. "I don't know what it was about, but he sure was in a _hurry_!"

Dawn already knew what her mother was trying to say._ It was: "Go stop Barry!" _

_Or: "Look after Barry!"_

_But also: "Keep Barry out of trouble!" & "Watch Barry!" and especially "Keep an eye on Barry!"_

Those words had been said to Dawn so many times, that it was now an instinct she could not ignore.

_"Keep Barry close, and don't let him do anything dangerous."_

Dawn clenched her teeth. Carrying out such a task was mostly impossible. "More like... keep an old man from balding," she muttered.

_I'll say it– though it's entirely shameful... _

_Fluffy's family is loaded. And my family is poor. _

_Because of past favors... and all the loans they graciously gave us..._

_My family is indebted to Fluffy's._

_But there's no way we can ever repay everything we owe. We both know it._

_To make up for this, it was contracted upon my birth that I would become Fluffy's personal slave and chew toy._

"Excuse me?" Her mom spat, eying Dawn suspiciously. She was an attractive woman, with all her youthful features and similar navy-blue hair in-tact, but she had something of a short temper when it came to Dawn's backtalk.

"N-nothing." Dawn looked away, heading for the door. ..._Time for Fluffy-duty._

"Keep him out of the grass!" her mom yelled.

* * *

Dawn strutted up to Barry's front door– tucking her hands into her big red coat's pockets._ The snow is melting, but it's still so chilly. Ah, Fluffy's yard probably needs to be shoveled again... but I'll get to that as soon as I've tended to his latest whim._.. And right as Dawn thought this, and stepped up to his front door– it flung open– and Barry flew right out at her.

_THUD!_

The girl landed on her back in the cold, damp slush, Barry's weight painfully crushing her stomach and legs.

"Ugh..." Dawn groaned._ Snow and Barry do not mix. I wish we lived somewhere tropical for that very reason. Even though I'm fond of the cold..._

"!" The boy looked down at her, suddenly realizing what he had done. His hands were planted firmly on her chest. "W-what was that about?" His face turned red.

Dawn looked away and suppressed a frown._ Stupid klutz. What are you blushing for? I don't have boobs yet, I'm 10!_ She shoved him off since he wouldn't move.

"Oh, hey, Dawn!" He felt at the ground– still flustered.

"Yeah?"

"Hey!" he shouted, "I'm going to see Professor Rowan!"

"Yes. Yes, you are," Dawn answered, monotone. _You've already made that quite clear._

"You should come, too!" He held his arms out wide. "And quickly!" Jumping up, he ran to the edge of the street before stopping and running right back. "Oh, jeez! Forgot something!" he blurted, and ran back inside his house.

Dawn turned around, blankly staring off into space._ Maybe... There's a place far away that's just as cold as this town. And I can go there to hide. It sure would be nice... to leave..._ "I want to get out of here," she muttered and dreamed.

* * *

"Too slow!" Barry yelled, sticking his finger in her face.

Dawn stood still and stoically took the atrocious invasion of her personal space. In this moment, she remembered how she often felt the urge to do something terrible to him, but in truth, she hadn't acted out against Barry in years.

Because the last time Dawn dared to... two years ago... she was severely punished for it. For, her father whipped her with a belt so bad– that she had to sit in the snow for two days straight to make the pain stop. Yes... And through years of punishment from her parents– her fiery temper had been sealed beneath a thick sheet of compacted ice, and her personality became a dry and chilly tundra, a wasteland of eternal winter.

_I'm late. Is Fluffy going to fine me again?_ Dawn wondered._ Though it seems impossible for him to be able to do math, I bet he's keeping a tab..._

"All right! Let's get moving to Professor Rowan's lab!" Barry skipped into the grass.

"Wait–" Dawn leapt, protectively grabbing his arm.

"What?" He stopped to ask, smiling foolishly; "Don't go into the grass, right? No worries! No problem!"

"It's dangerous to go alone," Dawn stated firmly.

"It doesn't matter that we don't have any pokemon," he explained in a rare moment of non-shouting; "Trust me on this one. I have an idea!"

Dawn's insides folded diagonally._ Are you going to use me as bait again?_

"Now listen. You know how wild pokemon jump out when you go into tall grass?" he asked.

Dawn stared at him. _So you ARE going to use me as bait again..._

The boy then proceeded to go on about some theory of his– an idea about running through the grass sideways in order to dash past any pests.

Dawn nodded at him as she listened, strongly fighting back her annoyance._ Idiot! It doesn't matter if you run through the grass on your hands– a pokemon will attack when it wants to!_

"On your marks..." Barry rushed off.

_N-no! He's going to– _Dawn almost tackled him.

"HOLD IT!" a man's large voice boomed.

Dawn spun around and instantly recognized the voice's source: a man from her favorite TV program.

It was none other than Professor Rowan, and he was walking right for them. "You two don't..." he began, eyeing them both suspiciously, "...You two don't seem to have any pokemon between you?..!"

"Er... That's correct, Sir." Dawn answered silently, confounded by his non-scripted way of talking. It was so different on TV!

"Then, what is the meaning of going into this tall grass?" the man exploded angrily.

"... ..."

Barry looked at the professor.

"... ..."

And the professor glared back at the two children.

"..." Dawn ascertained the situation silently. _Hm? Fluffy seems to be deep in thought about something..._ She witnessed a rare and serious expression settle on the boy's face, and it gave her a sudden, unexpected chill. It was almost kind of cool.

"Hey, Dawn." Barry turned to her, whispering in her ear loudly; "This old guy..."

"Yeah?" Dawn responded.

"It's Professor Rowan, isn't it? What's he doing here...?"

Dawn choked._ Fluffy... I thought you were finally displaying some long-awaited intelligence._

Professor Rowan turned away, deeply insulted by the boy's words. "...I'm not an 'old guy'..." Rowan muttered under his breath, "Hmph..."

"Please pardon us, Sir, we only wanted to find some pokemon," Dawn explained to Rowan, grabbing Barry's shoulder and pulling him to her side. A dopey grin stretched across the boy's face.

"...They tried to go into the tall grass because they wanted pokemon..." the old man mumbled to himself some more, his back still turned to the two children. "Hmm... What to do...?" he went on, "Their world would surely change if they were to meet pokemon... Is it right for me to put them on that path...?"

"You know, Sir, we can hear you," Dawn informed the professor.

"... ..." The old man turned back around and stared at them blankly. It seemed he didn't hear _her_.

"You two... You truly love pokemon, do you?" Rowan asked.

"They're ok." Dawn craned her neck brutishly. The professor stared at her in bewilderment.

"Me, too! I love pokemon, too!" Barry jumped and flailed, trying as hard as he could to get the professor's sole attention.

"I will ask you once again..." The man cleared his throat. "You two. You truly love Pokemon, do you?"

Dawn skeptically gazed at the elderly man. _He's not senile, is he? But he seems 'so-together' on his TV specials..._

"What?" Barry barked in indignation; "You can ask a hundred times! The answer will never change!" And arching his legs, he posed dramatically– forcefully displaying his burning spirit. "We'll both answer a hundred times," he swore powerfully, "we love pokemon!" Loosening back up, Bark turned to Dawn. "Right, Dawn?" he asked.

"Yeah. Sure." Dawn nodded. _Whatever Fluffy wants. I must oblige._

"...A pair of reckless kids who foolishly try to enter tall grass without pokemon of their own?..." Rowan shook his head. "It worries me what people like that would do with pokemon."

"Uh..." Barry scratched his head, looking surprisingly guilty. "Well, I, uh... ..." He suddenly lashed out and grabbed Dawn's arms.

"H-hey..." Dawn mumbled in surprise.

"Well, then forget about me, but give a pokemon to my friend here!" Barry appealed; "I mean, it was me who tried to go into the tall grass and all..."

Dawn's lifeless face softened a bit._ Is he taking responsibility for this? ... I guess he really has changed from since we were younger... Maybe he's finally becoming a man._

"Hah!" Rowan laughed heartily, "How big of you... Very well then! I will entrust you two with Pokemon! I apologize for putting you through that exercise..."

"Hah! R-really?" Barry stuttered, "Y-you're giving me a pokemon, too?"

"Yes! However– You must promise me that you will never recklessly endanger yourselves again. Now then..."

"It's a promise, Sir," Dawn stated.

Barry jabbered unrecognizably and flailed his fists. It was likely his own way of promising, too.

"Hm? Now, where..." Rowan dug through his white lab coat's pockets.

"Professor Rowan," a distant voice called. Dawn gazed straight ahead and spied a boy in a red beret, quickly approaching.

Her jaw slackened as the boy came closer. His soft dark hair and commanding posture immediately caught her attention.

But most of all– she was attracted by his bright red beret.

"You left your briefcase at the lake!" The boy laughed genially, handing it to the forgetful old man.

Dawn stared intently at the new boy._ He's so calm... And his sense of fashion is refreshing,_ she thought.

"Oh? Is something wrong here?" The boy laughed nervously, finally noticing Dawn's intent gaze on him.

Sensing something amiss, Barry curiously observed Dawn as well. He couldn't understand her frozen stare._ What's she staring at this french guy for?_ he pondered– his blond, puff-ball head bouncing in bafflement.

Dawn's dreamy eyes, which were usually half-closed, were suddenly wide open, and her pink lips, which were usually clamped shut, were parted slightly. This changed greatly concerned Barry; Especially Dawn's inflamed cheeks.

"Ah! There it is! Lucas, nice work," Rowan heartily thanked the boy.

"Lucas..." Dawn murmured to herself. _That's this refreshing boy's name..._

"Now then, I was about to entrust these two with their own pokemon," Rowan explained; "From this very case."

"Pardon?" Lucas ejected; "Those pokemon are hard to replace. Are you sure about giving them away?"

"Hm!" Rowan scoffed. "We exist side by side with pokemon. There comes a time when people should meet pokemon. There is a world that should be explored together."

"Yes, of course." Lucas held up his hands nervously. "But these are crucial and rare starters..."

"For them, today is that time. The place, right here," the old man proclaimed, proudly folding his arms behind him; "Go on!" He waved a hand at Barry and Dawn. "Open the briefcase and choose a pokemon!"

"Well you heard the Professor." Lucas beamed, setting the briefcase down for Barry and Dawn to rummage through.

"Really? Professor Rowan!" Barry blasted, hardly able to contain himself. "I can't believe it! I'm so happy now that I can't keep a straight face!"

Dawn closed her eyes and folded her arms. _You can't keep a straight face, regardless..._

As if reacting to her statement, Barry turned aside and grabbed Dawn by her red coat sleeve. "Hey, Dawn. You can choose first," he declared.

Dawn gawked at him– almost taken aback. But there was something strange in his eyes that she could not understand. "You sure? Seems you can hardly wait," she responded.

"Hey, I'm practically a man. I have to show some class here." Barry laughed, placing his arms akimbo like some defender of justice.

_Something doesn't feel right..._ Feeling awkward under the stares of Barry, Rowan, and even Lucas, Dawn spun around on her heels and briskly walked away. She was trying to escape.

"What's up with you?" Barry yelled after her; "Open the briefcase and pick a pokemon!"

Unable to disobey her tormentor, Dawn stopped and silently turned back around. Crouching down, solemnly, she flopped Rowan's brown leather briefcase open, and three pokeballs jiggled at her atop a pile of blue science journals and note books. "One of these, hm?" she muttered to herself. Fully suspecting the danger, but unaware of the rivalry that was to come, she began making her decision under the intense observation of Barry.

_~To Be Continued...~_


	2. Chapter 2: Attract

Dawn gazed steadily into Professor Rowan's open briefcase._ These are pokeballs... A pokemon is in each one of them,_ she thought;_ I have to choose one, huh? But once I do, what will happen to me? I'm almost frightened to find out, but surely, it can't be something too drastic– can it?_

"Well... Which pokemon will it be?" Lucas asked, tipping his red beret and smiling down at Dawn.

She caught sight of his face and immediately lost her sense of concentration.

"Come on, come on, come on!" Barry rushed at her, stomping the earth and jogging in place.

"Right... I'm hurrying here," Dawn said._ Three pokemon. A Turtwig. A Chimchar. And..._ She picked up the last one._ And a Piplup._

"Is this... an Ice-type?" Dawn inquired– her question more so being aimed at the knowledgeable Professor Rowan. However, she didn't mind at all when Lucas opened his mouth to answer instead.

"Believe it or not, but it's actually a water-type pokemon," the boy clarified, scratching his chin, "Though... Its final evolution is dual-typed with Steel."

Dawn narrowed her eyes at the pokeball steadily. Her face burned from his words._ He's smart... A smart boy?_ She realized; Impossible..._ It's amazing. I've never felt this way before._

"So... do you choose Piplup?" Lucas asked gently.

"Yes, I choose Piplup," Dawn automatically agreed with him.

"Hnn!" Barry nearly exploded, running in between the two and parting them with his arms. "Then, I choose you!" he yelled dramatically, reaching into the briefcase and grabbing up a pokeball, "I'm picking this Turtwig!"

"Hey... That pokemon is super-effective against your friend's," Lucas remarked.

"I know!" Barry grinned self-confidently– turning to Dawn. "I planned it all along. Aren't you impressed? Huh?"

Dawn turned away to hide her moody stare. So_ that's why Fluffy wanted me to chose first. I knew something was wrong. I don't quite get this super-effective thing... but I'm upset that he tricked me._ She then glared fixedly at him, all while thinking words she would never dare speak:

_But why would that impress me? ...Is trickery a respected sport in the warped dimension from which you came?_ She felt an unexpected storm of indignation build up in her at gut at this, and it seemingly grew and rose by the second.

"Well, it's not all bad, Dawn. You can still turn this situation around," Lucas said, kneeling down and patting the girl's head; "Since it's a water-type pokemon, Piplup can also learn ice-type moves... So in the end, you can easily make your Piplup super-effective against Barry's grass-type Turtwig."

Really?_ I can? _Dawn stopped– her rampant cyclone of inner rage subsiding at the refreshing-boy's hopeful words._ He's... amazing._ Feeling her face burning, Dawn looked away from Lucas and nodded quietly.

"H-hey!" Barry panicked, looking at his pokeball. "Did I choose wrong then?..."

"There's no wrong choice. All three of these pokemon are quite powerful." Lucas informed him.

"Very well, Lucas! I couldn't of said it better," Rowan huffed, turning to Dawn and Barry and speaking: "Both of you have chosen a good pokemon, it seems. Now listen well! The Pokemon you have been entrusted with are unfamiliar with the world. In that regard, they're much like you."

Dawn glimpsed into her pokeball at the tiny blue penguin inside._ Cute... it's cute. But it also looks powerful... And it's a girl! ...Will she help me last this difficult life? Maybe we can both find a dream together._

"As fellow newcomers to the world, I hope you'll do well together," Rowan rambled, turning and walking away; "Oh yes. If you have any trouble, come see me at my lab in Sandgem Town. And now, we'll be on our way."

"Professor! Wait for me, please!" Lucas yelled, nervously adjusting his red beret, "I'm sorry... Please let me pass." Placing his hands on Dawn's shoulders, he stood up and moved around her.

Soon after the boy's hands pulled away– Dawn reached and grabbed her shoulders in an attempt to hold and capture his lingering warmth._ His touch makes me feel different._ She then touched her burning, quivering face. _Did I melt?_

Dawn watched the refreshing boy run after the old man, and an endless stream of moments passed over her in a flash.

"How do you like that? Professor Rowan's really nice," Barry considered, "On TV, he seems so stern and scary."

"Yeah," Dawn agreed automatically, despite thinking differently._ Scary? Not really... And I like his TV persona. He always seems calm and reliable– and his voice is low and soothing._ "But is Lucas his assistant?" she pondered aloud suddenly; "Lucas is a lot like him... comforting and responsible."

Barry turned and glared down at Dawn.

_Lucas again? She seems to be really hung up on that guy..._

Barry held his puffy blond head in terror.

_Is it because he's so French-looking? This is bad! I have to do something– I finally have to show her how impressive I can be! _

_Here goes!_

"Heheh, Dawn!" Barry began, posing boldly, "We've both got Pokemon now. There's only one thing to do, right?"

Bewildered, Dawn stood up. "Heh?" She uttered– her eyes wide, "What are you going on about now?"_ I thought he was done with his hair-brained schemes for today... We're lucky enough that Rowan acted so graciously toward us._

"You know! We both have a pokemon now... right?" Barry urged her, "What do people do with their pokemon?"

Dawn held her chin in deep reflection. "...Dress them up?" she muttered.

"No no no! They battle, battle, battle!" Barry jumped and raved.

"Hoh. That's right..." Dawn turned away, finally realizing it._ That's what a pokemon journey is all about..._

"So..." Barry turned toward her seriously. "Are you up for this?"

"Not really." Dawn shrugged. _I would kind of like to go back home and snack on junk food... with Piplup by my side._

"What's with that attitude?" Barry twirled into a frenzy. "Don't be that way! Let's go, I want to battle you! I want to show you how good I am! I'll ask you again– are you up for this?"

"...Yes." Dawn finally obliged. _I really am a coward. I can't bring myself to tell him 'no.'_

"I've always wanted to say this..." Barry rubbed his hands together excitedly, clearing his throat and attaining a manly voice: "The time has finally come! Dawn! I challenge you... to a battle!" Steadying his pokeball, he lobbed it down– calling out his newly acquired champion.

Turtwig materialized into view and let out a small growl.

"Piplup... Go!" Dawn braced her back, slamming down her own pokeball.

It was astonishing to her– to see such a sizable creature emerge from such a tiny capsule; Piplup, a sweet faced little bird that was as blue as a berry ice pop; Dawn instantly wondered if the pokemon would enjoy such a treat, and if there were any left in the freezer at home.

"Break the waves of this century!" Barry bellowed melodramatically; "Take down your rival with a mighty tackle!"

Dawn sweated nervously, watching intensely as the heavy-looking Turtwig dashed at her sweet little Piplup.

_Maybe I've been underestimating Fluffy all this time,_ Dawn thought; He_ seems to know more about this pokemon business than I do. I mean... He even figured out how to get a type-advantage over me and all._

_Will he win this battle? Something about that..._

_Bothers me._

_But isn't that the way? That's what living this life with Fluffy is all about..._

Dawn shook her head to sweep away all her doubts._ No! For once– I won't be a coward. I'll face my fears! Fluffy, my master and tormenter– I'll take you down– once and for all!_

"Piplup! Face your fears head-on!" Dawn yelled out, "Never let your foe push you around– if you have the strength to do it– fight!"

Piplup gazed up at her– mesmerized by her strong words. "And you'll surely... You'll definitely live to be powerful and free!" Dawn charged, pointing forth at Barry's Turtwig; "Pound Attaaaack!"

Raging with spirit, Piplup quickly gained on Turtwig and– somersaulting through the air– rammed her tiny blue body against the green reptile.

"What in the...?" Barry let out in shock, hopping to and fro on his feet._ I've never seen Dawn act so passionate! Well... not in a long time, since we were really little– actually– but this sort of Dawn I... _

_...I kind of like even more!_

"Hm hm! Alright then, if that's how you want to go– we'll lay it out straight, right Turtwig?" Barry laughed invincibly, "Round back around and carry that tackle out to the fullest extent!"

Dawn watched in horror as Turtwig whirled back around and forcefully jumped Piplup.

"No! ...Piplup!" Dawn stepped forward, watching the penguin flounder about dazedly. "Pound Attack! Keep going!" she urged.

"That one hurt!" Barry yelped, "Tackle her! Rush her, take her down!"

With one last turn, Piplup cried and heaved, speedily bouncing her round, blubbery belly off from Turtwig.

Laying on his side, Turtwig closed his eyes and let out a dazed gasp; he had finally fainted.

"What? We can't keep going? !" Barry jumped maniacally, "This is where we hit our stride! ? What are you saying? ! ...We ended up losing?"_ This won't impress her!_ he panicked.

Full of stunned silence, Dawn turned and nodded at Piplup. "Good work... You won a battle I was never able to," she told the small bird._ Even if I didn't fight directly, this is the first battle I've ever managed to win against Fluffy... _

_I can feel it_ suddenly, Dawn realized;_ Rowan was right. With Piplup's appearance, my world is changing._

"Thank you..." Dawn kneeled down, gratefully hugging her pokemon. She nearly cried tears of relief due to years of pent-up frustration concerning Barry.

Responding to her deep emotions, Piplup flopped her wings around Dawn in return. "Piii..." the bird chirped.

"Whew! Let's go home..." Barry muttered as he picked up Turtwig, "I'm beat after that battle. My Pokemon needs rest, too. See ya, Dawn!"

The blond boy zoomed off.

"Let's go home, Piplup," Dawn said, lifting the pokemon up onto her shoulder. "You deserve lots of yummy snacks."

Blushing happily, Piplup clung to the side of Dawn's plushy, white ski cap.

* * *

Dawn sat on her legs atop her cold, wooden bedroom floor._ I didn't tell my mom about what happened earlier,_ she ruminated;_ I wonder if Barry told his mom? Ah... What would happen if we both told them? About Professor Rowan, and the pokemon he gave us... And that battle I won._

Dawn gazed dreamily at Piplup, who was sitting on the edge her bed and sipping skillfully from a can of soda pop.

"If I told her everything, Mom would probably yell at me for failing to keep Barry out of the grass..." Dawn considered aloud, "Even if he didn't get hurt..."

Piplup gazed at Dawn understandingly. The pokemon's intelligent expression immediately took Dawn by surprise.

_So smart. So powerful. So kind._

_I understand why pokemon are such a big thing in this world, now._

"You're awesome," Dawn said suddenly, patting Piplup on the head, "Please stay with me forever... Would you like some cherry-flavored snow?"

Piplup nodded her puffy little head.

"Alright then... I'll be right back," Dawn told her._ I'm awkward with my words, but Piplup doesn't mind..._

Walking down the stairs with a warm feeling in her heart, Dawn noticed that all the dinner dishes had been cleaned and put away.

_Hmm, so where's mom now?... Maybe she went to bed already._ Dawn grabbed a bottle of cherry syrup from one cupboard and a large bowl from another.

Slipping into her red coat and pink rubber snow boots, Dawn took her bowl and headed out the front door. Closing the door behind her, the young girl crouched down and eyed the ground, searching for pure snow in the moonlight.

It didn't take long for Dawn to recognize the low sound of two women talking and giggling, for their mature voices carried well to her ears.

One of the women was definitely her mom. The other woman was most likely Barry's mother.

"–will back from his business trip tomorrow. He should get here around noon," Dawn's mom explained.

_Are they talking about dad?_... Dawn wondered.

"I haven't told Barry at all... Have you told Dawn about it yet?" Barry's mother asked.

"No, no... We're going to explain it to her tomorrow. Then we'll have her sign the papers," Mom elaborated.

Dawn froze.

_Tell me what? _

_What papers?_

"Oh, it will certainly be a big thing for her to handle all at one time..." Barry's mother contemplated, "And going to the family registration office at such a young age... I was really nervous when I went there with Palmer, and I was a legal adult at the time... Will they get strange looks?"

Dawn crouched closer, her face stony in abject terror.

_Papers... Family Registration Office... Is someone divorcing? _

_Mom? Dad?_

_Barry's mom and dad?_

_... But their marriages seem so perfect... No, this can't be!_

"Well, there's no room left for doubt." Dawn's mother proclaimed, "We've already decided... Dawn matches Barry perfectly."

"Yes. And Barry just loves her to pieces. I know he'll be eager... to become her husband."

_Hu... Husband?... _Dawn held her breath and nearly suffocated. Her heart pounded in her throat and her lungs dropped to her stomach.

"Definitely. Dawn will need a little persuading... But I think she'll dutifully accept this marriage. ...And will become Barry's wife with great responsibility."

The dark sky above Dawn nearly sucked her in, and– if it had– it would've offered a pleasant escape from the crude reality she was now facing. Though every winter star twinkled brightly at her, an ominous cloud of dudgeon formed thunderously in her heart.

_Barry's wife?_

_No. No way._

_...I'm to be Fluffy's bride?_

_To clean up after him and bear his children? Forever? And all time? _

_Mom, dad... Don't you love me anymore? _

_Isn't this a modern day and age? _

_...Don't you believe in finding true love?_

Lucas's face flashed in Dawn's mind. "..." Grabbing her empty bowl, she stood up and carefully trudged back inside the house._ For the past ten years, I have faithfully obeyed your commands– stepping out of line only once or twice, _Dawn thought;

_As just a baby, I brought Fluffy his bottles and fed him loyally. As a toddler, I kept him away from sharp objects. As a young child, I still kept him away from sharp objects– but I also patched his scrapes and cuts and held him whenever he frequently cried. _

_I've let him fling mud at me, flip up my skirts, cut my hair, break my toys, wipe boogers in books, eat all my snacks, and copy my homework._

_Did I do this for him? No. I did this all for my love of you– my two precious parents._

_Well... _

_I have been an unselfish daughter for long enough._

_Mom, Dad. I love you both. And I will write to you often._

_But this is it. I will no longer take these atrocious demands!_

_I will no longer put up with Fluffy-duty._

_I'm going to leave home now... Forever._

Climbing upstairs, Dawn silently began to pack.

_I'll take Fluffy along with me and drop him off somewhere far away along the way... _

_That way, our parents will focus their efforts on finding him instead of me. _

_Yes... For as long as I can remember– they've always put his happiness before mine. I know they'd definitely look for him first. I just have to get far away from him for this to work._

_Should I write a goodbye note to them and hide it in my drawer, or should I mail one later?_

"I'll mail it later..." Dawn said to herself. Satisfied with her plan, she grabbed her overstuffed duffel and turned to Piplup. "I'll get you cherry-flavored snow along the way..." she breathed; "Because our journey begins now."

"Plup." Piplup nodded loyally.

_~To Be Continued...~_

* * *

Special thanks to **Twinleaffan124** and **MourningBlack** for the first reviews. I woke up to them and was all :D

It was pretty awesome.


	3. Chapter 3: Frustration

Gazing up through the chilly midnight air, Dawn observed Barry's upstairs bedroom window.

_I can't enter through the front door, obviously,_ she calculated; _Right. I need to climb up._

Stepping back a distance, Dawn careened forth– planting her feet halfway up the house's wall and latching onto the edge of the first-story roof with her hands. Holding back her cries, she struggled to pull herself up, Piplup's pokeball rattling on her belt as a reminder of her conviction._ From now on... I'll be as strong as Piplup._

With her stomach doubled over the eve, Dawn clawed at the roof tiles and wormed on over– bringing both her legs up and about._ Success! Keep going..._ Crouching forth, she investigated Barry's window._ As expected, he left his window open by a crack. There! It opened easily._

Swinging her bare thighs over the window sill, Dawn landed on Barry's bedroom floor with a plop, and after momentarily gazing at him, stalked over to his bed. He was sleeping on his back and drooling helplessly.

Reaching over, Dawn snapped the cord on the bedside lamp and flooded the area with light. "Hey... Barry," she whispered, placing her cold hands on his neck._ I'll steal some warmth from him._

"Nyhh..." Barry stirred before quickly rolling over.

"Wake up. Wake up," she muttered, shaking him by his arms._ Before your mom hears us._

Stubbornly refusing to wake up, Barry countered by burrowing further under his thick blankets and sheets.

Exasperated, Dawn yanked them all back.

"!" Stupefied, the messy-haired boy shot awake and gawked up at her. "Da–"

_Fluffy, that's too loud!_ Lashing out, Dawn cupped her hand over his mouth. "Shh. Barry. We have to be silent."

Pulling away, Barry clumsily grabbed her arm. "Hey...Dawn! What's going on?" he began, quickly becoming distracted by the fully-stuffed duffel bag that hung across her shoulder. "...Oh! I know what's up! This is a 'secret sleepover', isn't it?"

"Barry... When was the last time we had a sleepover?"

He stopped to unnecessarily count on his fingers. "Urm... Let me see here... About two years ago?"

"Exactly. We're too old for that."

"Then... Why else did you sneak into my room tonight?" he requested, "Do... you have something else in mind?"

"Yeah. I do." Dawn muttered, leaning over him and unbuttoning his flannel pajama top.

He froze abruptly, reclining back as Dawn's busy fingers moved down his chest.

_They still make these kiddie pajamas in his size? _Dawn pondered;_ Ha, I bet they're custom-made... Wow... he's grown. Why does he have muscle there?_

"D-Dawn," Barry said strangely.

Startled by his tone, she peered into his face and discovered that his cheeks were tense and feverish. But he was far too energetic to be sick._ Fluffy..._ Dawn stopped. _What are you blushing for? Before you learned how to dress yourself, I always changed your clothes, remember?_

_...No wait. That __**also**__ ended two years ago. We're too old for this as well!_ Moving back, Dawn stilled her face to hide her deep embarrassment. "This isn't what it looks like," she mumbled, "You need to get changed. We're running away."

"Oh." Barry blurted, frowning, "We're just running away? That's all?"

"Yeah." Dawn's eye twitched. _That's not big news to you? And what were you expecting from me?...!_ Moving to the dresser in awkward purpose, Dawn busily dug a shirt out from the top drawer. "Let's get ready," she explained, turning around to discover him waiting impatiently on his bed with folded arms. He was waiting for something. To change clothes? "Do you need me to look away?" she asked.

"Hm? No." Barry pointed at his chest. "I'm waiting for you to finish! You will, right? ...I'd like that."

_Finish? _Dawn lurched backwards. _Finish what?...! _

_Oh, he means changing his shirt._

"Right." Dawn nodded, frowning uncomfortably. _Is he making fun of me now? _

Smiling innocently, Barry lifted his arms out– ready to have his top pulled off and switched. Flustered, she yanked it off.

_Fluffy... You're pretty twisted for an idiot._

_And lately, you've been getting even more questionable.__ These days, I never know where your hands will land whenever you collide into me._

_No..._

_I'm being paranoid and over-thinking this. That's right... You're too naive to be aware of such impure things!_

Grabbing a fresh shirt, Dawn hurriedly slid it over Barry's head, settling his blond nest of hair into an even frizzier mess. When he smiled contentedly, it made her contemplate some very strange things:_ If we both stayed home and waited for our parents' horrifying news... just how would you respond, Fluffy?_

_What would your opinion about our unnatural marriage even be? _

"Ah, all this attention feels nice!" Barry sighed happily.

Dawn bottled back a sob._ Yes. That probably __**would**__ be your response. Fluffy, you never seize to gross me out._ "You really like attention that much, huh?" she asked.

"Only of the famous type."

"You should become famous, then."

"Ha! I will become famous! Just you wait and see!" Barry bragged, "I'll become even more famous than you! Ok?"

"Right... Where's your bag?" she asked.

"Hey, uh, Dawn! Why are we even running away, anyways?" Barry chattered, slipping into his orange striped jacket.

In a motherly manner, Dawn leaned close– wrapping and adjusting his green scarf around his neck._ Fluffy, don't you realize it yet? This is all an elaborate act. But it's best for you to never find out... _

_Yes, I'm going to deceive you. _

_Starting now._

"Earlier, I asked our moms if I could take you on a pokemon journey," Dawn lied, holding her breath before speaking again; "But they said 'no'... That's too bad, isn't it? You wanted to become famous, right? Like on TV."

"Oh... They said that?" Barry stopped to ponder, "Man... But I really wanna become a completely kicking trainer! Hm... Do you think they'll change their minds if we become pros?"

"Yeah. Of course."_ I'll betray you–_ Dawn swore with all her being; And_ I won't even think twice about it!_

"Alright then! If it's with you... then... I'll run away!" Barry sang as he packed, producing a wad of garments; "Wow, this sounds like a lot of fun! Hey, are these shirts ok?"

"Barry... those are swim trunks."

"Whoah! ...I knew the sleeves looked weird!" he declared, "That totally bulldozed me over...!"

"Yeah... That was trippy." Dawn turned away. "Pack something warmer."_ That's right, nothing's going to stop me now,_ she schemed;_ I'm not going to feel guilty or be scared about the consequences, because I–_

_I refuse to marry someone who's like an annoying little brother!_

Still in his pajama bottoms, Barry plunked back down on the bed, holding his legs out to her: he was motioning with the universal sign for pants-removal. He glanced up at her– almost as if really expecting her to do it.

"...You're changing those yourself." Dawn denied him.

* * *

On the route beyond home, the two journeyed, breathing shortly to keep the chill air out from their lungs.

"It's cold out here! I'm so cold! I've gotta keep moving to keep warm!" Barry yelled, jogging circles around Dawn. "Say, where's the next stop? Are we going anywhere in particular first?"

Stopping, he answered himself instead of waiting for her answer: "Oh yeah!" He snapped his fingers. "We should go visit Professor Rowan and thank him, huh? Alright, that's a great idea, I should've thought of it sooner!"

"It's really late," Dawn said, sinking her hands further into her coat pockets._ Pfft. It's almost one in the morning. No one's awake at this hour._ She glanced around at the silent route.

_But what if Lucas was up?..._ Underneath Dawn's frosted cheeks, she felt something burning._ Tonight, I'm leaving forever. So... I'd like to see that refreshing boy one more time..._

"Well..." Dawn reconsidered, "I guess we should try visiting **them**, anyways. Doesn't hurt to try."

"Hm?" Barry winced, eying her suspiciously. _Who's_ '_them?' I said Professor Rowan. Professor Rowan alone–_

_Ah! I got it... Is Dawn still thinking about that Lucas-nerd? !_

_...It's his frenchy hat, isn't it?_ Glowering slightly, Barry grabbed Dawn's hand and slung her close. "Hey! I'm freezing! So hold my hand, ok?" he selfishly decided; "It'll help keep me warmer."

"Ok..." Dawn responded. Staring up into the icy, limitless sky, she continued walking by his side._ Why do the stars burn so bright during winter nights?_ The question always mystified her– winter after winter, they always shone brighter than in any other season. _Maybe they're all retaliating against the cold. But it shouldn't even matter, right? The stars are too far from the earth to feel anything... _

_Hn. This is just another one of those nonsensical theories that I try to understand but can't._

_Like...Why did I even agree to hold your hand, Fluffy?_

_I'm not your maid anymore._

"Hah... Your hand is all sweaty," Dawn made an excuse, pulling hers away. "Feels weird."

"Oh? ...Well..." Barry uncomfortably trailed. "–I guess that means I'm all warmed up now!" He laughed heartily. "You're like a human heater... It's pretty amazing since you're so frigid." He sprinted ahead.

Dawn stopped from his words; it was like he had an understanding of something that she didn't. This was one of those moments when their age gap became so apparent._ What does that mean?... And why are you running off from me, Fluffy?_ She quickly chased after him and found him standing high atop a ledge._ Trying to look cool like your dad again?_

She panted quietly as she neared.

"Too slow! Dawn, I'm sick of waiting..." Barry said suddenly, gazing down at her with his demonic orange eyes. Steam rose from his mouth and flooded the freezing air.

Dawn was once again startled by his words.

_Waiting? Waiting for me? ...Oh. _

_Fluffy, sometimes I can't catch the meaning of your words. I can't understand you, and it surprises me... But of course your words don't mean anything... You never mean anything. You're an idiot._

"I want to see Professor Rowan, so I can thank him properly," Barry explained, striking a pose, "So, I had this great idea. Listen up, OK?"

Dawn rested her arms at her sides and complied.

"You know that lake we always play at?" Barry asked excitedly.

Dawn blankly nodded._ How can I forget... You nearly drown there every summer. And last time, you stubbornly refused to wear your life jacket. It caused me so much trouble. Both our moms screamed at me._

"You know how they say a legendary Pokemon lives there?" He clutched his fists and gazed heavenward.

"...You want it," Dawn realized aloud.

"You guessed it! Let's catch that Pokemon. That'll make Professor Rowan happy. I'm sure of that!" Barry once again decided; "Me and you together, we've got nothing to fear!"

Dawn half-heartedly shrugged. _Together with you, I've got everything to fear._

Barry stared down at her and pouted._ Jeez, why does Dawn seem so down tonight? Is she __**that**__ upset that our moms didn't agree to our pokemon journey?..._

_Dawn, I've known you for so long, so I can tell when something big's bothering you. But just what is it, huh? That's the part that always puzzles me!_

"That Pokemon battle earlier... Wasn't that wickedly fun or what?" Barry zealously rushed; "I mean, I'd pick the moves, and my pokemon would use them! Yeah, I'm going to battle tons and get real close with pokemon. Nothing will change that."

"Good," Dawn answered, killing the conversation. Frustrated, Barry jumped down and stood behind her.

"Hey. That's enough talking already," Barry once again selfishly decided; "I'm itching to get going to the lake. Come on, come on!" Grabbing Dawn's shoulders, he pushed and led her off.

* * *

"All right! We're at the lake!" Barry clamored, pumping his fist high up into the air; "Get ready, because we're capturing that legendary pokemon."

"I don't know about this." Dawn listlessly scratched her head.

"Trust me on this one. It's here." Barry persuaded, gazing at her solemnly.

She gulped, almost taken in.

"–It even says so on the sign!" he announced, shaking a finger at the nearby signpost.

"..." Dawn glanced at its cheesy, painted picture: a pink, four-tentacled smiley face. The whole signboard seemed to scream 'tourist trap!'

_Fluffy..._

_Don't look at me with such a determined expression! It almost tricks me into believing your idiocy!_

Before Dawn could even finish recollecting her sanity, Barry grabbed her shoulders and carted her forward and past the thick grove of trees.

Though reluctant at first, Dawn stopped at the sight of the glassy lake before her. Immediately, she realized that she had never seen it so late at night– and especially not under such a bright and starlit sky. Puffs of warm vapor rose mysteriously from the water's tepid surface.

"Romantic, isn't it?" Barry asked instantaneously, turning to her.

"Yeah." She nodded impassively. _So do you really know what that word means?_

Without warning, he grabbed her hand again.

"You know! Dawn, I–" Barry stopped mid-sentence when he realized that Dawn was busy staring at a person on the waterfront. "What's going on?" he asked, studying the suspicious blue haired man.

"...The flowing time... ...The expanding space... I will make it all mine one day..." the man orated, holding out his large hands steadily towards the water, "Cyrus is my name. Remember it... Until then, sleep while you can, legendary Pokemon of the lake bed..."

The man's voice sent anxious chills up Dawn and Barry's necks– and the two felt even more shaken when the tall man turned around and stalked towards them. Though appearing young, the man's forehead was large and tensed, and his eyes were sunken and sullen. It appeared as if his intensity alone had aged him many years.

_Who is this guy... and what's he doing here? _Dawn nervously wondered.

"Allow me to pass," the man deeply declared; "Stand aside."

As requested, Barry and Dawn quickly made room for him.

After the strange man left, Barry held back his trembling arms– pretending to not be bothered in front of Dawn.

"What was that about?" Barry asked her; "Weird guy..."

"I think he said his name was Cyrus." Dawn figured.

"..."

"..."

"OK, Dawn!" Barry started back up, ignoring her observation; "Let's catch that legendary pokemon!"

_Kyauuun!_

A ethereal roar shook the ground and nearly shattered their eardrums.

"D-Did you hear that, Dawn?" Barry blasted, scrambling to locate its direction; "That was the legendary Pokemon crying! That had to be it! OK! This is our chance! Let's catch it!"

With shaky hands, he dug through his coat pockets–and– after still being dissatisfied, grabbed Dawn's duffel and ripped it open. "...Wait! What...? We don't have anything on us!" he shouted in suspense– his hands lingering towards Dawn's personal garments.

_WHO gave you permission to dig through my bag?_ "H-hey," Dawn said; "What are you looking for?"_  
_

"Uh. You know, Poke Balls! P-O-K-accent-E Balls! If we don't have those we can't catch Pokemon or take them around with us!"

Dawn turned away to hide her frustrated scowl._ The accent is over the E, you twit._

"...Do you think Professor Rowan'd give us some if we asked him?" It seemed that Barry honestly believed that bumming more freebies from the old man was the correct way to repay the said man's kindness.

"Hoh... Where'd you get that idea?" Dawn glared off at the lake, already too aggravated to be dumbfounded._ Fluffy. Don't be annoying! It loses all meaning as a gift if we do that._

"You know, you remember what he said, don't you?" Barry rationalized, exhaling deeply. "He said to visit him at his lab if we needed anything."

Dawn held her chin and reflected on his statement._ Fine. That is true. And beyond that, I wonder if Professor Rowan can offer me guidance on traveling the region... I want to get FAR AWAY from here and as soon as possible._

"Ok," Dawn finally agreed; "Just don't tell him that we're running away."

"OK, Dawn! I'll race you!" Barry shot, revving up to go. "First one to the professor's lab in Sandgem Town rules!" He hurtled past past her, leaving her alone among the thicket.

* * *

"Hey! Anybody up?" Barry yelled, bursting in through the front door of Professor Rowan's lab.

Swiveling around from his computer, the professor rose to his feet and studied the impatient trainer. "... ...You're that child from the other day," the professor finally noted.

A cot creaked from somewhere seen. "Professor! What's going on in here?" Lucas hurried in from the adjacent room, "I heard some–" The boy stopped unexpectedly, staring at Barry and adjusting his red beret in disrupted repose.

"I need some pokeballs! Right away! So fork them over, ok?" Barry held his hand out. "Please? Thanks!"

"...Are you robbing us?" Rowan wondered, scratching his white bushy head.

"Huh? Noo!" Barry cried, "Of course not! I just came here for some pokeballs! ...Pokeballs! Pokeballs!"

"...Do you know that it's one in the morning?" Lucas asked, tiredly rubbing his face, as if to shield himself from the burning intensity of Barry's hyperactivity.

"Agreed! This is quite an odd hour to be... barging into people's labs... while demanding pokeballs," Rowan lectured; "But since you said 'please', I'll indulge your bizarre request." Shuffling over to a filing cabinet, he slowly yanked open a drawer and dug around in it. "Hm," he groaned, much like a tree-bough in a wind storm.

"Come on, come on!" Barry encouraged him; "I need pokeballs right now! It's an emergency! I didn't ask that pokemon to wait on me, you know!"

"Hey... Where's your friend?" Lucas asked suddenly, looking around.

"Huh?" Barry glanced at the dandy boy suspiciously. _Does he means Dawn?_

"You know!" Lucas smiled gently, placing his hands on his sides. "That cute, shy girl."

Barry's mouth dropped open._ He noticed it, too?...!  
_

"C-c-cute?" Barry stuttered, forcefully laughing, "She's not cute at all! Do yourself a favor and go get your eyes checked! Ok, pal? ...That'll really help you if you really plan on becoming a professor!"

Lucas knowingly narrowed his eyes at the blond: "Ok... But I asked you where she was."

Barry halted his laughing at glared back at the beret boy. "She's on her way here!" Barry strongly boasted, "We're going on a pokemon journey together! Just me and her! ...She's even the one who came up with the idea and asked me!"

"Hm... That sounds like fun," Lucas answered with a gentlemanly smile. "I'll wait outside for her then, alright?" Without waiting for Barry's approval, he quickly vanished out the front door.

"H-hey you!" Barry motioned to stop Lucas, but Rowan sternly called the blond's attention.

"Here!" The professor held out an armful of pokeballs.

"Huh? ...Finally! I've been waiting forever! That legendary pokemon at the lake has been waiting, too. Since you've been awesome, I'll be catching it for you, ok? I'll be taking these then–" Barry grabbed at the pokeballs.

"Wait!" Rowan sternly snatched Barry's arm, and clamped his strong fingers tightly around it.

"W-what is it?" Barry jumped, deeply frightened by the serious old man.

"The legendary pokemon at the lake?" Rowan interrogated; "No... You must not disturb it!"

"Why not? Don't you like studying rare pokemon?" Barry challenged, "Look, I just wanted to catch it as thanks for giving me and my friend those pokemon–"

"–Foolish boy! You are nothing but a fledgling in this whole wide world!" Rowan barked, "You are not yet ready! You must do some serious training before you are to challenge the beast of the lake!"

"O-ok..." Barry cowered, frightened by the old man's elevated voice._ This grandpa is intense!_

"Now then." Rowan let go and straightened his lab coat. "I heard that you have decided to set out on your journey already. This is most excellent. I have something important to ask of you, so allow me to re-introduce myself–"

Barry ignored the old man's rambling and struggled to see outside beyond the dark, front window._ Where'd Mr. Frenchie go? I can't see him!_

_Wah! Is that Dawn?_

Barry watched vehemently as Lucas seemingly summoned Dawn out from under a nearby tree.

The beret boy gently placed his hands on Dawn's shoulders, sending Barry into a frenzied panic.

_That dweeb's putting the moves on my woman!_ Barry held his puffy head of hair in deep agitation, and he stomped up and down at this._ This won't do! I told that nerd to go get his eyes checked! That should've been enough of a warning! What do I do, what do I do? Ah, there's no time to think! I've gotta act now!_

Spinning back around, Barry snapped at the rambling old man. "–I know who you are, there's no need to yammer on! You're the world famous Pokemon Professor Rowan!" Barry rushed; "Well, I'm going to become world famous too, and when I come back here, I'll be bringing that legendary pokemon for you!"

The professor leaned back in discomposure as Barry pointed at him.

"My name's Barry! Forget it, and I'm fining you one-billion pokedollars!" Without sparing another moment, Barry barreled back outside the door, determined to do anything to stop the two lovebirds.

_~To Be Continued...~_

* * *

Special thanks to **Lil Enchantress**, **Crystalgurl101**, **Twinleaffan124**, and **Lolacocacola97** for the huge reviews. I was completely astonished by them!

Yes, this story is part romance. Since FF only lets you select two categories, I thought comedy/adventure worked better... Maybe it'll be changed later.

After realizing that everyone's been cheering for Barry, this chapter was bent more in his direction... But he still has to struggle for love. D:


	4. Chapter 4: Lick

Leading Dawn away from the roadside, Lucas relinquished his grasp on her shoulders. "Please, come with me," he said, offering her his arm and, politely, gesturing for her to take it. "Let's go... The Professor is waiting."

Anxiously, Dawn glanced at him from aside._ You're actually offering me your arm? _Her insides trembled with deliriousness.

_...Cool._

Slipping her arm in his, she walked side by side with him, and basking in his attention, she experienced a surge of growing warmth._ It feels like I'm in an old-time movie. Ah, I'm having weird thoughts again..._

"See? This is our Pokemon Research Lab," Lucas told her, shivering and exhaling.

_Are you chilled? _Dawn pondered, startled by his trembling. ..._How long have you been waiting outside?_

Realizing that they had to unlock their arms to enter through the front door, Lucas laughed nervously. "Oh." He said, pointing ahead. "We'll just..."

"Right," Dawn responded, deeply disappointed._ That was short..._ Letting go of his arm, she reached out for the door knob– only to witness it yanking back from view.

Barry flew out at her.

_**THUD!**_

"!"

Dawn landed in the sand– face upwards– her knees fully bent in the sit-up position. Fortunately, it seemed her legs had deflected most of Barry's high speed collision.

"Ugh..." Dawn groaned, slowly becoming aware of her sudden back pain._ My butt feels really weird..._

"What the," Barry yapped, finally noticing his prey, "Oh, it's you, Dawn!"

Shaking out of her daze, Dawn finally became aware of Barry's hands. She gasped in conclusion._ That's why my butt feels really weird!_

"That old guy–" Barry jabbered, completely unaware of his violation of her person, "–he's not scary so much as he is _totally_ out there!" His hands were shoved under the space where Dawn's thighs met the sand.

"...Do you know what you've just done?" Dawn muttered, too angered to even breathe._ Fluffy! Have you reverted to your seven-year-old self?...! I thought you had progressed past sticking your hands up my skirt. I am sorely disappointed in you!_

"Aww, it doesn't matter, Dawn," Barry stated distractedly. He eagerly glared back at a distraught Lucas._ Look at what I'm doing, you beret-wearing hipster! I'm touching her butt!_

_Whatcha think now, huh?...! _

_Take that!_

As if hearing Barry's crazed challenge, Lucas broke out of his shock and raised an eyebrow. He wryly smiled– almost as if to say:_ 'Ha, that? ...I've seen worse.'_

Pulling his hands away, Barry chocked back his spurting uncertainty and fumed in failure._ I knew it! This guy's goody-goody personality is all an act! ...What a frightening nerd! I have to step up the pace if I'm to make him take me seriously–_

_Ahh! What do I do? What do I do?...!_ Rattling his childish brain for answers– Barry – in a moment of desperation, finally remembered an invaluable truth that his father had once taught him.

_Yeah... That's right!_ Barry realized. _It's genius!_

His father's words echoed: '_If someone tries to steal a possession of yours– be it a video game or a dinner roll– indefinitely lay your claim on it by... licking it! No one wants to handle someone else's drool! ...And that's how you protect your stuff!_

Barry faithfully obeyed, even though Dawn was far from being a video game or dinner roll, and he was blatantly abusing his father's keen advice.

"Eh..." Dawn froze in horror– her face turning blue._ Fluffy. Why are you licking my knee? _

_You idiot! Is it covered in honey?...! No– even it was– that's still not a reasonable excuse!_

_Normal people don't do __**that**__!_

Finishing his assault, Barry pulled away and stood up to confront a petrified Lucas; discombobulated and devoid of life, the boy gawked back at Barry in defeat.

"Heh!" Barry chuckled at him, posing in supreme victory._ I did it! I won! A tried and true tradition wins out in the end!_

Dawn crawled off her back and shamefully cradled her face._ No... This can't be happening. and in front of Lucas, too... Fluffy, how do you always know how to humiliate me?_

"I'm out of here. See you later!" Barry yelled, throwing up his fists and skipping off.

Drained of their will to exist, his two victims quietly lingered behind.

"What was THAT?" Lucas finally demanded, his disturbed face regaining some color.

"My... knee..." Dawn gazed at the ground. ..._Has been defiled._ A violent hailstorm brewed beneath her wooden eyes as she slowly considered Lucas' question._ You ask me what that was?... You want me to explain it?..._ In truth, even if she wanted to, not even she knew what _that_ just was. Even after knowing Barry– and experiencing him, for so long– she still found him bewildering her into submission with his unstoppable and inventive idiocy.

Sensing Dawn's deep distress, Lucas stepped toward her. "Your friend always seems to be in such a rush." He laughed uncomfortably, trying to break past his newfound hesitance. "Anyway..." He crouched down and held his hand out to her. "Let's go in."

* * *

"...Hmm... I see," Professor Rowan remarked, carefully observing Dawn's Piplup. Placing a steady hand on the pokemon's plush, round blue head, the professor gazed into her beady penguin eyes.

"Piii?" Piplup chirped, sitting obediently.

"This Pokemon seems to be rather happy. Hm!" Rowan stated, sounding quite pleased, "Entrusting you with that Piplup was no mistake, it seems!"

"Plup. Plup." Piplup warbled, standing up and waddling over to Dawn. The tiny penguin stopped and gazed up at the girl in concern.

"Nh. Are you hungry?" Dawn said, kneeling down to dig through her duffel bag._ I made sure to bring plenty of junk food for us to eat..._

"Well, would you like to give it a nickname?" Rowan inquired.

"Yeah, sure," Dawn distractedly agreed, handing Piplup a tube of snack chips. The pokemon peeled back its plastic lid and excitedly fished out a chip.

_You share my love for that snack, don't you?_ Dawn thought;_ You like those kinds of chips the best._

"Oi... I know then." Dawn finally decided, gazing lovingly at Piplup, "Your name shall be _Pringles_."

Rowan coughed slightly and scratched his head. "Hmm, OK, I see," the old man said strangely; "And you're happy with that nickname?"

Dawn looked down at Piplup, who gave the thumbs-up with her tiny bird wings.

"Yeah, we are," Dawn said, blinking steadily to keep her mind off of the unpleasant thing that happened earlier.

"You two must really like potato chips." Lucas chortled at her expense. Dawn skittishly focused her eyes on the floor._ Why? ...Is that weird? _

"Ahem!" Professor Rowan cleared his throat, commanding attention.

"...When I first saw you two about to step into the tall grass without pokemon, I was shocked." Rowan rambled, bringing his hands behind his back, "I was astonished by these foolhardy children."

"But now," he continued, "you've astounded me in an entirely different way. Already, there is a bond growing between you and that pokemon. I feel privileged to have met you. I'm sure Pri... Piplup feels the same way about you. That's why I'll ask you to cherish that Piplup of yours."

"Of course." Dawn nodded seriously. _Whenever the Professor speaks, it sounds like he's talking to himself..._

"Boy, am I glad you're kind toward pokemon," Lucas said with a troubled tone, "If you weren't, well... I don't even want to think about it."

"Eeh?..." Dawn murmured, suppressing her own surprise. _Did he just... THREATEN me?_ A storm of nerves pulsated in her brain, sending malaise and alarm throughout her entire body. Did Fluffy's little stunt earlier damage Lucas' opinion of her?

"Er-hem!" Professor Rowan called everyone's attention; "Let's move on to the main topic. There is something I want you to do for me. Allow me to properly introduce myself first."

"But I watch your show all the time," Dawn interrupted, raising her hand to speak. _I know who you are._

"My name, as you know, is Rowan." The professor ignored her. "I study pokemon."

Dawn stiffened her face._ Is it too early in the morning for him?..._

"First of all, I want to know exactly what kind of pokemon live in the Sinnoh region," he went on, "to do so, it is necessary to collect data using the Pokedex... This is what I wish to ask of you." He produced a red and black handheld device from his large coat pocket. "I want to entrust you with this Pokedex," he announced.

Lucas gasped in revelation, appearing to be surprised about the Professor's decision.

"Will you use it to record data on all the Pokemon in Sinnoh for me?" Rowan asked sternly, gazing at Dawn with his unmoving gray eyes. He held it out for her to either accept or reject.

Sweat beaded down the side of Dawn's forehead. _Accept? But I came here to... I mean, I came here for..._

_...What was it?_ Her brain locked up, unable to process any decision or thought; Lucas's strange, disapproving expression overloaded her nerves that much. "No," Dawn coldly denied at last.

"... ... ..." Rowan stood like a tree, dull and speechless.

And Dawn continued to sweat nervously._ He's not moving... Is he upset with me? _she wondered;_ Is he having a stroke?_

"... ..." Still more silence followed. "I can stand here without speaking for _hours_," Rowan finally expressed, "I'm a very patient man."

Dawn nearly jumped out of her boots._ So I don't have a choice after all?...!_

"Let me ask you again, Dawn. I want to entrust you with this Pokedex." Rowan forced it at her with his huge hand. "Will you use it to record data on all the pokemon in Sinnoh for me?" He glared down at her with an intensity that threatened to obliterate her tiny frame if she so refused again.

Dawn instantly became aware of how much taller he was than her. "Yes." She quickly took it. "Sir."

"Hm! Good answer!" Rowan nodded, randomly pulling a candy bar from his pocket. He munched it silently.

Dawn held her new pokedex at her side, quivering in mute fear._ Fluffy, I was wrong. This old man... he really IS scary..._

* * *

"Hey, Dawn! I want to show you a few things." Lucas called out to her, tilting back his head, "So, follow me!" Snapping it back around, he power walked ahead and led her down the street.

_Lucas has been acting weird ever since the incident, _Dawn worried._ And I'm having many stupid thoughts... and I'm getting even more paranoid!_

On a walk throughout Sandgem, Lucas took her, showing her the pokecenter and pokemart, and then explaining to her their various amenities. He explained these things to her thoroughly, but Dawn couldn't seem to pay attention at all. Her noisy heart kept clouding up her ears, and her mind was jumbled up with a blaring red noise that originated from somewhere below her ears. Lucas patted her on the shoulder, waking her up.

"Don't worry about it, OK?" he told her, studying Dawn with an air of hesitance when she nodded. "Oh, yeah, right! Dawn..." he murmured, "you should let your family know you're helping Professor Rowan put together his Pokedex."

Dawn folded her arms tightly to her chest._ Go back and tell my family? ...The same family I'm running away from?_

"Sometimes, you have to go far away, so you should let someone know," he said thoughtfully; "Go heal up first, ok? You'll be safer then..."

Dawn nodded at him.

"OK, be seeing you!" He waved back, walking off and away from the lab. He was heading up the route where Barry had run off through. It was along the path to Jubilife City– the path to freedom.

"But... No. I'm not going home," Dawn said to herself._ Because that's not my home anymore!_ She raced after Lucas, escaping through the town's northern route and following him past the trees.

* * *

_Ahh no! _ Barry panicked, flailing his arms._ I can't believe that I went all the way to Jubilife City only to remember that I had forgotten Dawn! This is awful! I hope I can find her–_

_Huh? _

_...What's this?_

Slowing down from his frantic pace, Barry hung close and hid behind a tall line of cypress trees. When he heard the sound of Dawn's familiar heavy footsteps, he watched silently as she ran into the grass, sprinting toward somebody. Barry instantly spied Lucas nearby, since his red beret was clearly visible in the dim light.

"Dawn?" Lucas yelled, turning around and appearing troubled at her expedient arrival. "Did you tell your family that you're helping the professor?"

Panting, Dawn averted her gaze and eyed the tops of her boots. "Yes," she lied, freezing her face to appear more convincing.

"...You didn't, did you?" Lucas remarked. "I know. There's no way you ran home and back that fast."

"I went home! I told my mom I was leaving!" Dawn stubbornly lied.

"I know you're eager to get going, but... you shouldn't make your mom worry." Lucas determined, grabbing her arm and spinning her back around. He gently shoved her away.

"..." Dawn defied him and stepped back into the grass._ I'm not going back... I'll keep trying to pass until you give in!_

"This is an odd time in the morning to leave. No one's awake, huh?" Lucas muttered, shuffling close and staring her down, "I noticed it earlier when you entered town... You were busy kicking around in the snow, and then in the sand. Why?"

She panicked, backing away. He stepped forth after her.

"Suspicious. Were you destroying footprints?" he asked.

Dumbstruck, she wildly shook her head.

"What are you hiding?" He got in her face, sending her body into overheat mode.

"N-n-nothing," she sputtered, squinting her eyes.

"Na na nothing, you say?" he monotonously imitated her; "You're running away from home, aren't you? Hm."

"No!" Dawn strongly denied, shifting all the blame onto Barry:_ Agreeing to Fluffy's plan was a bad idea, I should've stopped him from dragging us to the lab. Now Lucas is going to tell Rowan– and then Rowan is going to call my mom__,__ and then–_

"Tell me why you're running away," Lucas implored, ambling off several paces; "I want to honestly hear you out."

_Huh?_ Dawn froze in place, her mouth twitching. She observed Lucas's back, trying to discern if he was sincere or not. But it was even harder to read him when she couldn't see his face. Leaning forward, she decided to believe in him.

"That guy... Barry... Our parents go way back," Dawn began, clenching her fists._ Am I really going to tell him this? I'll die if he decides to laugh at me..._

_But something wants me to tell him the truth..._

Lucas threw back his head and gazed at her. "Barry? You mean your impatient friend? What about him?"

From behind the trees, Barry listened carefully. Something strange was going on. He felt his blood pulsing through his neck and his instincts were telling him to jump out and yell something. Yet against all urges, he stayed still where he crouched.

"It's hard to tell, but Barry is actually one year older than me," Dawn began, "You know... My parents only decided to have me after he was born."

"Oh. So they saw their friend's baby and wanted their own?" Lucas concluded.

"No. This was all so I could be his maid, valet, and slave," Dawn said, "My parents owe an unpayable debt to his parents, so I'm part of that payment."

Lucas's eyes widened. "That's..." He dwindled.

Barry felt his arms go numb. He was hearing things he had never been told– perhaps things that he was never supposed to have been told.

"I was ok with this. It wasn't so bad," Dawn simply admitted.

"Was ok?...Wasn't so bad?...!" Lucas exploded; "That sounds awful! Embarrassing! Wow, that's reason enough to run away from home!"

"But that's not the only reason," Dawn concluded; "I heard our mothers speaking... both our fathers are probably coming home for this... Today. To take Barry and I to sign the marriage register together."

From that confession alone, Barry felt his awareness begin to shake and pull apart. It took him several seconds, but he finally realized that he had been magnificently duped– and in more ways than one. It threw his fluffy world on the ground and stomped it into tiny bits of lint.

"What..." Lucas scoffed in disbelief.

"You know... To be married," Dawn muttered, nervously scratching her head; "Hey... Do you think I'm weird?"

"Of course." Lucas spat, unable to move from where he stood. "The weirdest girl I've ever met."

"I'm glad..." Dawn mumbled. _At least I'm that much to you... Because there's no way you'll ever look at me seriously now._

"I uh... Wow. Does your friend know?" Lucas inquired, pacing toward her.

"No."

_I can't take this anymore!_ Barry held his head. Jumping up and down, he sped away. Fumbling through the grass, he bolted back for Jubilife City, panting once he reached full speed.

Tripping on a ledge, he stumbled and cut his hands– but he bounded back up and kept on running.

_Dawn, is that the reason why you've always been there for me? Is that the reason why you climbed into my room to take me away?_

_I don't know what to think anymore..._

_How could I have not known any of this?...!_

"Of course you don't want to be with me!" Barry yelled, flailing his arms in a bizarre fit of rage._ Marriage! Marriage! We're too young for that, I understand! But you've rejected me from the start, haven't you?_

He stopped at the large, stony staircase leading up to Jubilife's entrance.

_You probably... honestly hate me. And you probably think your parents don't really care about you..._

_But..._

_I care about you._ He smiled, but it was actually a restrained frown. "Eh?..." he whimpered in confusion. Hot tears streamed down his face. Fighting against them, he grabbed his face and blindly curb-stomed the cement steps. Bellowing unintelligibly, he continued his bewildered rampage, at least until tripping and falling backwards.

Lying face upward, he bawled like a huge baby.

Letting out a flood of depressed sobs, he drained his overflowing emotions and finally sat back up– wiping his nose all over his coat sleeve.

_I won't cry anymore... because at least I'm smart enough to know that I'm an idiot..._ Standing back up, he quickly forged up the staircase.

_And it's not over yet... Nothing's impossible! _

_I've always been after Dawn, but always in the wrong direction... But I'll change that. I'll change directions._

_Instead of running straight for her, I'll..._

_I'll run clear away from her!_

"And I'll keep trying every direction until I finally get somewhere!" Barry yelled in determination; "I'll become stronger and keep going– and one day I'll be escaping from a direction where she's running after me!"

Pulling his scarf tighter, he kept moving on, the city's bright lights offering to illuminate his uncertain future.

_~To Be Continued...~_

* * *

Geez, that was a depressing chapter... Here's a cute Barry and Dawn picture to make up for it:

Remove the asterisks *

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	5. Chapter 5: Blizzard

After Dawn's distressful confession, Lucas immediately set to preparing her for her desired journey. One of the most important things to teach her– he considered– was of the art of capturing pokemon; a lesson which he was quickly winding up.

Twitching in the grass, the pokeball– pitched by Lucas only moments before– went still, gleaming from the registration of its capture; a wild Bidoof.

"...And that's how it's done." Lucas finalized his demonstration, bending down and grabbing up the ball. Chimchar whooped excitedly as the boy disinterestedly tucked away the newest addition to his team. (Chimchar had been given to him by Rowan as an afterthought following the event with Dawn and Barry.)

"Actually, I should have lowered the target's health some more," Lucas realized aloud, scratching Chimchar's head before recalling him into his ball. Reaching into his backpack, Lucas pulled out a handful of pokeballs at presented them to Dawn.

"Thanks." Dawn nodded, taking them._ He caught that wild pokemon so easily... Even after watching carefully, I'm still unsure if I can do the same._

"Use those to catch your own. Remember, having a larger team helps you travel further." He zipped his bag closed. "Any questions or comments?"

"No... You're a good teacher," Dawn admitted, "I feel strange holding this when you're far more capable." She patted her right coat pocket, rattling the pokedex within._ Yes... I'm still confused about what went on at the lab earlier. Why did Rowan force this pokedex on me? And why did Lucas appear so uneasy about it?_

_More than anything..._

_It felt like I was intruding on them._

"If Rowan chose you too, then... he must see some latent potential in you," Lucas said, taking his red beret in hand, "So be more confident and do your best, ok?" Clutching his hat close to his chest, he stared at her solemnly with his dark gray eyes.

Dawn studied his scruffy short hair; A modest, yet mature cut._ The answer to Fluffy's demon horns. A boy's head– as it was intended to appear in nature. How refreshing._

"What?" Lucas frowned. "Do I have hat hair?"

"Yeah," Dawn blurted, removing her hat as well. Anxiously glancing down, she reservedly held her ski hat over her reddening face._ Ah, I need to get going... But this moment feels nice. If it could last forever..._

"If I do, then you do, too," Lucas retorted with a laugh.

Before Dawn could think of anything else in return, a blinding white puff of fluff landed on her eyelash.

"Oh, snowing already?" Lucas held out his hand. "Odd. The snow warning said there'd be a night's delay. Well... I guess it can't be helped."

Dawn lifted her face tp the sky and watched as the flurrying puffs gathered in speed and number._ Where'd Fluffy go?_ she worried.

In response to her question, the sky threw down tiny ice stones.

"Oh wow!" Lucas complained, quickly re-capping his head, "Hail?...!"

"This is bad... I have to find him," Dawn suddenly said._ Because Fluffy... He's afraid of hail!_

"Huh, your friend again? It seems he ran off without you, though."

"Yeah. It's because he's forgetful. But..."

Running under the trees for shelter, they watched in disbelief as the storm only worsened.

"When he sees hail, he panics... He worries he'll be stoned to death," Dawn explained._ But 'panic' is an understatement,_ she recalled;_ Fluffy more so screams desperately–__shivers– and hides under the nearest table._

_Hail. It just might be the only thing he fears..._

_And I know, it's because he was once bludgeoned by large, sharp hailstones as a child. _It was an event that Dawn could only barely recall.

"Hm." Lucas tipped his hat nervously.

"It's only going to get worse," Dawn said. _I need to find Fluffy now._ Holding her duffel bag up over her head, she ran out into the open.

"Where are you going?" Lucas yelled after her.

"To find him."

"No, I'll go find you friend." Lucas ran after her. "You go back to town and wait until it stops."

"-Bu–" Before she could protest, Lucas darted ahead.

"See you around!" he called.

* * *

Dawn sat stiffly in the pokecenter chair, her hands on her knees as she listened to the scattering sound of hail outside– a buffeting onslaught which refused to let up.

_Fluffy... Lucas..._ Dawn worried; _Now I'm concerned about the both of of them. If anything happens to them, it's my fault._

_Terrible. They're out they're, and... ah no! What if my and Fluffy's parents checked on us and found us missing? They would be out there searching, too. We're still so close to home, and so many things are going wrong._

_I'm sleepy, but I'm too strained to close my eyes... I have to do something.  
_

"I didn't see this coming at all!" a lass trilled, dusting melting ice off her skirt. Ever since Dawn had entered, various trainers had poured into the pokecenter seeking refuge.

"It was so sudden," a man mentioned, "this type of weather mostly appears in the northern part, even around this time of year."

"Well you know what they say," a woman hushed, "sudden blizzards can be caused by wandering ice pokemon!"

"Yeah... Except there are no pokemon like that around here!"

"That's what makes it a 'wandering' one."

Dawn listened intently to the amusing chattering, forcing her straight face into a semi-hospitable smile.

_So probably... a pokemon is causing all this? ...That's all? That's what's keeping me here? No...I can't keep sitting still like this. I need to find Fluffy and Lucas!_

Standing up, Dawn forced her arms back into her thick red coat. Parting the pokecenter's doors, she stepped out into the blasting cold.

Silence fell in the pokecenter after she left.

"...Is she really planning to travel in this blizzard?"

* * *

Pulling her scarf up around her mouth and nose, Dawn forged ahead in the volley of damp, cold whiteness._ I saw the route sign awhile back, so I must be on the right track, _she thought;_ Fluffy, where did you run off to, you idiot? I wanted to stop worrying about you like this... And this weather is just as ridiculous as you are. _

_Are blizzards supposed to strike at the start of everyone's pokemon journey? _

Absorbed in her doubts, she tripped on the growing footing of snow beneath her, and she landed face down in the wet and chilling slush.

"..." The blustering wind assaulted her eardrums as her limbs went numb. Though she enjoyed freshly fallen snow, she was still only human. Blizzards were proving to be too overwhelming for her to handle.

She silently laid face down in the snow, unable to move._ The odds must be against me... Was running away pointless? I acted so stupidly._

_Ah... I'm sleepy..._

Feeling her eyelids close, she nodded off to a place that offered a permanent rest.

_No... wake up!_

An inhuman growl shook her.

Gasping, Dawn shot back awake. Willing control back over her limbs, she stood to her feet and strained her eyes. The snow before her churned into hail once again– and through the heavy ice chunks she could miraculously see the clearing's expanse before her.

In the midst of her vision stood a fir tree with hulking arms. Unexpectedly, the arms swung readily at her.

* * *

"This concludes our Trainers' School midnight cram lesson!" the ace trainer announced, tapping the chalkboard and tossing back her glossy green hair.

"Ha! My notes are perfect," a youngster bragged, folding his arms on the large table. Across from him sat a lass, smacking her sleepy face gently.

"Oh... It's over. Hm?" she stared up at the ceiling, "Wah! Is it still hailing outside?"

"It stopped for awhile, but it suddenly started up again," the youngster announced; "But hey, weren't you paying attention?...!"

"I retain lectures better when I sleep through them," the lass proclaimed.

The school's front door tore open, and the outdoor elements pelted the wooden floor with scrambling ice chunks.

"Huh?...!" The children turned their heads to look.

"AHHHHHHHH–" Barry yelled, diving under their table.

"Eek! Don't touch me!" the lass shrieked, scooting her legs away, "...Unless you want to battle."

Shivering, Barry clutched his hands over his head. "Poff...poff...poff..." he chattered, curled up like a small, frightened animal.

"...Poffins?" The lass guessed.

"Yikes! This guy is weird!" the youngster declared, standing up, "Hey weirdo! Don't go yelling and diving under furniture! And show this school some respect by shaking yourself off at the _door_! You got my shorts all wet!"

"Aww... he looks scared." The lass sympathized, crouching down to pat Barry's head; "He must be lost. And by the sound of it, probably hungry, too–"

"He's not a pokemon!" the youngster bellowed; "If he needs something, he'll speak intelligibly!"

"Ahem, well then..." the ace trainer called out to her students, "It appears that the blizzard isn't letting up. As per regulations, you'll all have to crash here until it stops."

"N-no way!" the youngster cried.

"Perfect time to brush up on our Status Effects lesson." The lass yawned.

Under the table, Barry shook uncontrollably._ Dawn... Where are you right now? ...Are you still with that guy?...!_

* * *

"Haa!" Dawn gasped, falling backwards in the snow, dodging the tree's swinging arms. Coming closer, the tree bent over– creaking slightly– staring her in the eyes. It had eyes of its own– eyes that were as green as the tips of its branch-like arms.

_It almost looks... curious..._ Dawn gazed back._ A pokemon? Is this what's been causing the blizzard?_

Once again, it lifted its branch-like arm, reaching out to Dawn. It waited for her, motionlessly. Her hesitation floundered.

_Does it... want me to take it?_ Slowly, Dawn reached her fingers forward and touched its green, brushy hand.

"..." Widening its eyes at her, the tree began to purr gently.

"Aha!" a young man bellowed, crunching his orange boots through the furious weather, "I've found you, Snover!"

Dawn narrowed her eyes at him in surprise– it was a dark haired fellow in a matching orange vest and hat._ A Pokemon Ranger?...!_ she looked in surprise.

Unlatching the rope from his belt, the young man whipped and cleanly lassoed the startled tree pokemon.

"You're going back to Acuity Lakefront with me," the young man grunted, pulling the rope tighter, "Where you belong!"

"Verrrrr!" Snover shrieked, protesting and struggling. It gazed at Dawn in distress, brushing her away.

"Don't you get it, Snover? You bring bad weather wherever you go," the ranger gasped, fighting to keep the rope taut; "You cause problems by snowing towns in... You just don't belong outside your home! So stop running away like this!"

"..." Dawn clutched Piplup's pokeball, readying it._ Snover... You were just trying to run away? And escape, like me?_

_Trying to find your own place in this world...with a desire to see interesting things..._

Dawn stepped forward.

"Stand back!" The ranger warned her, "When provoked, this kind of pokemon becomes unstoppable!"

No sooner after the man had said that, Snover thrashed about wildly, billowing like a tree in a storm. "Snooo!" It tore, straining the rope and snapping it apart. Fully enraged, it swung its arms in circles, spewing out razor sharp leaves.

"Quick, get out of here! I'll hold him off!" the ranger cried.

"No, that won't be necessary!" Dawn blurted, running up to the snowy creature. "Snover... If you only want to run away, then..." She spread out her arms, challenging the raging monster. "Then run away with me!" she offered, "Battle with me!"

As the vicious wind razed through Dawn's long hair, she steadied Piplup's pokeball, showing Snover her intention: "And If I capture you... I promise you! –I'll show you this world as you've never seen it!"

Hearing her declaration, the Snover whipped its boughs to roar. Initiating battle, he charged and rocked towards her.

"Pringles! Go!" Dawn yelled, sending out her tiny penguin, "Launch offensively with a pound attack–"

Swinging his boughs, Snover wove them through the air– summoning a glittering dust of powdery snow.

Slamming Pringles with a blanketing gust, the Piplup broke through. Shivering, she waddled ahead and bounced the animated tree with her belly.

"Keep pounding away!" Dawn commanded, "Stay light on your feet– don't stand too long in the snow or you'll sink... Try to fly!"

Chirping lightly, Pringles nodded her round little head. Flapping her stubby wings to gain momentum, she evaded the Powder Snow and powerfully jounced her blubbery belly clean off of Snover– sending him tumbling.

"A critical hit! Expert work, Pringles!" Dawn cried out, "...It's time!" Unzipping her duffel open, she pulled out a pokeball._ Lucas... I'll use what you taught me..._

_And I won't let you or Rowan down!_

Winding back her arm, Dawn raised her knee up and she pitched the pokeball straight into Snover's face. Sucked inside, Snover struggled from within the round capsule, twitching and rolling the tiny ball about the ground.

Dawn stared critically, holding her breath.

At last, the ball gleamed in success, and Dawn approached it, taking it in hand.

"We did it... Pringles," she murmured.

"Whoa... The blizzard stopped!" the Pokemon Ranger remarked, staring up into the brilliant starry sky– a sky which was fading from navy to brilliant periwinkle.

"Nn," Dawn agreed, rustling through her bag to pull out one final thing. A tall glass bottle.

"Huh? What's that you have there?"

Unscrewing its lid, Dawn poured red, thick syrup all over the ground– visibly disturbing the ranger. "Our victory feast," Dawn mumbled, "Dig in, Pringles."

Handing the tiny penguin a spoon, and grabbing her own, they crouched around the red syrupy ground.

And they finally ate their cherry flavored snow.

_~To Be Continued...~_

* * *

Huuu. I think I'm getting a winter cold... Everyone, don't go outside barefooted!

Here's a mo~e styled Lucas and Dawn for you:

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	6. Chapter 6: Detect

"Beep beep beep–" a digital watch shrieked, rousing Palmer from his tall, golden throne.

"Oh, what's this?" the man remarked drowsily, brushing back his pea green coat sleeve. "It's 3 in the morning, and he's in southern Jubilife City..."

"Is it the BPS?" the maid asked, setting down a platter of caffeinated drinks._ The Barry Positioning System!_ She knew; A_ secret, custom-made Poketch App that Palmer had developed for him..._

"Yep, it sure is," Palmer reported cheerfully, closing his eyes. "I guess his fiancée heard the news and decided to kidnap him. How cute. What will she use him for? ...As a decoy or for ransom?" He slapped the armrests of his throne– making it apparent that he was NOT pleased.

"Fiancée? Kidnapped Barry? Ransom?...!" The maid spat, nearly falling over. Regaining her balance, she trembled as she watched Palmer glow like a poked ember. Every blond spike of hair on his head swayed mysteriously as he sparkled and smiled.

_He's powering up his wind aura! _she panicked, stepping back in horror. _Contrary to his outward appearance, he's royally upset!_

Standing up, Palmer seemingly summoned a raging gust of wind out from the ceiling, which oddly billowed the tail of his long coat. Retaining his facade of joy and self-control, he turned away and rambled quietly to himself. "Gilroy... Why doesn't your sweet daughter want to marry my adorable son?" he asked pleasantly. A whirlwind whipped up and exploded a nearby vase. "Why, only five years ago, Dawn clung to my coat and said that she wanted to marry me. That was of course, a weird idea, but it seemingly cemented the fact that Barry was perfect for her... PERFECT. But now? NOW?" His wind aura raged to a crescendo. "Such deception! Just for her insolence, I'm fining you forty-million pokedollars!"

"Tower Tycoon Palmer!" the maid cried over the gale, tugging at the hem of her fluffy pink skirt. "You're being unreasonable again! Barry may have inherited your looks and intensity, but not your ideas! And Dawn was too young at the time to understand the implication of her wishes!"

"You make a good argument, Angie! But Dawn has always been precocious. Even as a baby, she glared at everyone with the eyes of an adult. It was quite unnerving... And anyhow, Barry is practically a clone of me, in mind and body... Barry is my spirit successor! Though he did inherit that capriciousness from his mother..."

_What are you talking about? _The maid scrunched up her nose in disbelief. _You're more capricious than Barry and your wife combined! _

_And were you born in the feudal age or something? No one does arranged marriages anymore! Especially not between children... I would've ran away, too! Honestly! You're a good man and all, but you're a total romantic and a bit off the deep end..._

"Sir, if you don't mind me asking," the maid said, restraining her strong opinions, "why do you keep fining Gilroy all these outrageous dues if he's your best friend?"

"Ha! That's because he's none other than my rival. Don't you know the saying 'Keep your friends close but your enemies even closer'?" Palmer crossed his arms– his coattails billowing ever outrageously in the unnatural indoor wind. "Rivals are a stunning combination of both friend _and_ enemy. So that leaves only one logical conclusion: that rivals should be kept as IN-LAWS."

"I can't... argue with that logic," Angie answered, staring at the wall blankly.

"Exactly! Send Agent Looker to ascertain the situation in Jubilife City. If he's not available, call Jenny at the SP."

"Yes, Sir."

"I'll contact The Poketch Company to see if they can get audio/video on my son," Palmer relayed urgently, turning to leave the room; however, remembering one more thing, he stopped and spoke again. "And fine that fibbing Gilroy's account!"

"On it, Sir..."

* * *

Shuffling up from his wooden chair (back at the Trainer's School), the youngster folded his arms and gazed out the window. "Huh? The hail stopped," he muttered, turning around to confront his newest classmate. "Yo, newcomer. You can come out from under there now."

Barry uncovered his head slowly and looked up with wide, surprised eyes. ..._It's over? _

"Hey Cat. Show him out from underneath the _table_," The youngster exhaled, shaking his head.

"Come on, it's safe now. You were only afraid of the hail, right?" The lass coaxed, kneeling down and reaching for Barry. Gulping slightly, he took her hand and allowed her to pull him out.

"Now then! My name's Dan. Youngster Dan," the youngster announced, placing a hand over his chest.

"And I'm Lass Catrina," the lass announced, standing up and curtseying.

"Ah! Name's Barry," the said blond idiot answered, standing up as well.

"Welcome to the Trainer's School!" the two students hailed.

"Wow. A trainer's school, huh?...!" Barry emitted, gawking at them. Shifting his eyes, his short attention span whirled away when he noticed the classroom's blackboard.

"Knowledgeable... chalky scribbles!" he yelled passionately, dashing up to it._ If I became a nerd, would Dawn love me?_

Crushing the blackboard's edges with his fingers, Barry intensely poured over the wall of text. For the first time in his life, he spent a full minute concentrating.

"Erm... Take your time," the female ace trainer announced, sweating nervously and backing away. "If you don't understand anything, feel free to ask my students."

"Teacher! Don't push your responsibilities on us!" Youngster Dan erupted. "It's late, it stopped hailing, and we all want to go home!"

"It's ok! I'm actually going to stay a little longer anyway," Lass Catrina patted Dan on the shoulder. "You know, to study some more and help out the new kid, so don't worry about sticking around~ See you tomorrow!" she sang, prancing away to join Barry at the blackboard. "Do you have a girlfriend?" she unabashedly asked the boy.

_Noo! _ Dan agonized. _The new boy is stealing my crush!_

"A... Girlfriend?" Barry stopped, his brain sizzling from Catrina's question. Narrowing his eyes, he forgot all about the bright classroom around him. His vision darkened with static, and his mind flipped to a different channel.

"Hello?" Catrina asked, waving her hand in front of Barry's glassy eyes.

_Girlfriend? _He realized._ I was always waiting for Dawn to understand and return my feelings. But I know better now. The kindness she's shown me all these years was only a chore. She'd rather run away than be with me._

___But why did she decide to run away with me?_

Barry frowned and whimpered, his eyes glossing over with tears.

"S-sorry! I didn't know..." Catrina waved her hands, trying to calm Barry down. _Wow, what a response... His girlfriend must've died or something!_

"Huh?" Barry noticed a stack of pamphlets clipped against the blackboard. "Maps!" He danced, jumping to and fro. He quickly ripped a few away.

"I don't get this kid..." Catrina exhaled deeply. _Ok, so maybe his GF didn't die... But this Barry boy is definitely hiding a traumatic secret about the girl he likes! I want to find out what it is, and then I'm gonna HELP him._

"Alright, let's study," Youngster Dan proclaimed, smacking a fat dictionary atop the central table.

"I thought you said you were going home..." Catrina sadly pointed out.

"I didn't say anything of that sort... and don't act so disappointed!"

* * *

Dawn carefully climbed up the cement stairway to Jubilife City. Holding the railing and steadying her feet, each frosted, snow covered step beneath her threatened to make her slip. Overcoming the last step and reaching the street above, she noticed him.

_Lucas!_

Opening her mouth, she tried yelling out his name– but despite emitting sounds– her voice jumbled up and caught in her throat. She stood motionless, bewildered by her body's strange betrayal._ Why can't I call out to him?_ she wondered; Is_ it because the air is too cold?_

"Hey, Dawn!" Lucas finally noticed her, hurrying to greet her.

Wrenching her eyes shut, Dawn jabbed a pokeball out at him. Without even knowing it herself, she had wanted him to see it– to see the Snover that she had just caught.

"Huh?" Lucas spoke, swishing his hands out from his crinkling jacket pockets and taking the pokeball. Glancing at it for a few seconds, an uneasy expression flashed across his face. Straightening his shoulders, he handed it back to her. "I think you should catch some more," he stated neutrally, looking away. "It might be more of a challenge raising a lot of pokemon..."

"Oh..." Dawn breathed uncomfortably, her disappointment pitting at her insides. It almost felt as if Lucas was downplaying her accomplishment. _Maybe I'm just being selfish, but I wanted him to be a little bit happy for me..._

"Ah, but it's worth it." Lucas laughed awkwardly, pulling at his red beret. "The more pokemon you have, the happier you'll be."

_I'd be happier if you'd just tell me 'good job.'_ Dawn closed her tired, sore eyes. She listened to Lucas ramble on, realizing how mellow his voice was, but once again unaware of what he was actually saying. _It's late... How much longer can I keep going before I need to sleep? _

_I need find Barry so we can get out of here before sunrise..._

"It's all right. Follow me," Lucas said, taking her by the hand and pulling her from her sleepy reverie. Tugging her close behind him, he took her up the street.

"Eh?" Dawn uttered, uncertain of where they were heading. _I want to ask him where, but that would be admitting that I wasn't paying attention..._

Stopping abruptly, Lucas whispered over his shoulder at her. "That guy... What's he doing?"

A suspicious man in a brown trench coat slunk behind a lamppost with a finger pressed to his ear.

* * *

"Agent Looker, do you hear me?" Angie's voice rang in the man's ear. Despite his numerous shushes into the mic, the maid refused to stop talking at him.

"Did you pick up that special recorder from The Company?" she drilled him. "And did you read the case file? Dawn's a ten year old girl with long, dark blue hair. She's about one–point–four meters tall. Have you found them yet?"

"Please, Miss. I'm finding it difficult to concentrate!" Looker bumbled, running out into the street and dodging behind another lamppost.

"Come on, just say yes or no!" Angie cried in desperation.

"Affirmative," Looker answered, checking the sidewalk very carefully. _The sewer grating to Mr. Barry's location should be in this perimeter. Search for it, I must._

Checking the sidewalk across from him, Looker realized that he had been previously standing on the sewer drain. Angie's nagging had simply made him overlook it.

"Affirmative to my first question or my last?" Angie interrogated. "Because you need that special recorder in order to monitor Dawn! Your job is to make sure she gets it. It's very important for my assignment!"

"Understood," Looker answered, running back across the street and towards the sewer drain.

"Uh, excuse," Lucas said, interrupting the man; "But are you looking for something?"

_Red cap... An enemy spy!_ Looker snapped. Reflexively, he disarmed Lucas and twisted him into a wristlock.

"WHAAAT?" Lucas bellowed, writhing in pain and unable to free his arm.

Dawn watched, astonished and suddenly wide awake. Shifting onto her left foot and unlatching her hairclips, she slid out their inner blades and locked them into place._ I wanted to stop being a maid, but... _Under her parents wishes, and for the protection of Barry, she had been trained in the secret arts of the battle maid. It was all a part of the agreement.

"Boy... how did you know?" Looker demanded, retaining his grasp on Lucas and pulling him close as a meat shield. "How did you unmask me as a member of the International Police?"_ No good!_ The agent panicked further; _That girl's stance. Seen it before, I have! In fact, Angie has demonstrated to me in the past.  
_

Dawn's bladed weapons glimmered in the lamplight, highlighting Looker's observation:

_That girl's stance is indicative of... the Battle Maid Shurikenjutsu Style taught by the Castle Valet Darach! _

_This means, then..._

Lucas sputtered to defend himself: "Huh? What? Are you kidding?" Lucas laughed in fear. "I didn't know ANYTHING about until you blurted it all out! I was just making small talk..." Closing his eyes and panting in pain, Lucas looked down, unaware of the face-off between Dawn and Looker.

Dawn held her knives ready and tilted her chin. _Lucas isn't my responsibility, but I will protect him nevertheless._

Fully understanding her intent, Looker talked to bide his time: "... Heh. You claim you were only making conversation, do you? But I know better not to believe that."_ This dark blue-haired girl matches the profile for Miss Dawn,_ Looker realized;_ But who is this boy? I made a move too rash. I must make safe this heated situation..._

And so Looker released Lucas, allowing the boy to stumble away. "Ok–" Looker said; "A misunderstanding." He held up his hands and smiled. Though he knew how to speak TWELVE whole languages, he wasn't too skilled with the Sinnoh's, so his speech was a bit jumbled.

"Heh?" Dawn's mouth dropped open. Groaning, Lucas rubbed his sore wrist and adjusted his slanted beret. Quickly, Dawn hid her knives in embarrassment before he could see them.

"You recognized right away that I was someone extraordinary," The secret agent praised them. "That is why you spoke to me, is it not? Your power of deduction is fearsome! Quite admirable, you are!"

_This man has a strange way of speaking._ Dawn realized. ..._Is he a foreigner? That must be why he's acting so funny..._

"Now that my cover has been blown, let me introduce myself." Looker beamed confidently._ I will now employ a special, double-agent skill,_ he thought to himself;_ I shall reveal myself to the enemy and gain their confidence. I will carry out my mission in this way. It may even be auspicious to allow Miss Dawn to aid me in my first secret mission... The mission I was fulfilling before Mr. Palmer requested my services._

"I am a globe-trotting elite of the International Police. My name... Ah no, I shall inform you only of my code name. My code name, it is Looker. It is what they all call me."_ Miss Angie, I will deliver the secret monitoring device, the Vs. Recorder, as requested! But I must continue my duties in pursuing Team Galactic._

"Looker?" Lucas and Dawn both echoed.

_~To Be Continued~_

* * *

Damn you, Barry. I want a battle maid, too!

|:C


	7. Chapter 7: Rest

Dawn held the Vs. Recorder in her hands. Too tired to try and understand why it was given to her, she merely stared at its glossy screen. In the darkness, it reflected off orange slivers of light from the nearby lamppost.

_A device for recording pokemon battles..._

Lucas peered after Looker, who had JUST given Dawn the device and ran off before any questions could be asked. Such was the nature of a man who lead a life of danger.

"Maybe all secret agents are like that... Living on the edge must drive them off of it," Lucas concluded, winking his eyes and yawning. It seemed he wasn't awake enough to make much sense out of it, either. "But anyways... working for the International Police sounds hard."

Tucking the digital recorder in her duffel, Dawn averted her eyes and strained to search for Looker on the distant road ahead, even though he had long disappeared from sight.

_What was that thing he said about thieves? And about criminals stealing people's pokemon,_ Dawn wondered– remembering the few words that Looker had departed her with;_ He needs my help with identifying bad guys, huh?... He sure needs it if he mistook LUCAS for a criminal. Oh... I should've told him about that eerie man that Fluffy and I saw at the lake..._

Distractedly scurrying away and across the street, Lucas stopped at the corner building. "Dawn, here we are. This is the Trainers' School," he told her; "The name says it all."

Dawn remained momentarily, unable to recall if he had ever mentioned the school before. Dawn realized that it must have been during the many times when she wasn't paying attention.

Sensing her misdirection and confusion, Lucas walked back to her. "Your pal Barry went in earlier..." he told her knowingly, his voice slightly hoarse. He coughed to clear it. "He might still be studying in there."

Dawn nodded at him contemplatively. _I need to grab Fluffy and get out of here before anything weird happens... Anything else, I mean._

"Hm. Right," Dawn said. "It late... You should go home now. You look beat. I mean... Thanks." She clumsily streamed together her words, alarmed over how rude she sounded. Lucas smiled at her regardless, shooting a warm yet unhappy sensation through her chest._ I know, he has to go home..._

"Ok, see you around!" He saluted, hurrying back down the street sooner than expected. His quick departure left her baffled.

_But I'm leaving forever..._ Dawn considered, sauntering off. Pulling the school's door open, she closed her eyes as the classroom's hot air enveloped her and made her drowsier.

Before her, in the center of the room, was a wooden table surrounded by a boy and a girl– a lass and a youngster bickering bitterly like an old, married couple.

"You 'retain lectures better' when you 'sleep through them', _my shorts_!" the boy yelled, pounding the table with each quote. "You don't remember a single thing, do you?...!"

"Eyah! I won't stand for this abuse _anymore_!" the girl screamed, standing up.

"What? ...You just did!" he blasted, pointing at her.

"Huh? ... ...Idiot boy!"

"Ungrateful girl!"

_What a stupid argument,_ Dawn realized, quickly walking past them. Sneaking up beside Barry, she lingered momentarily to watch him. His eyes swung back and forth like a metronome, pinpointing the blackboard before him.

_Impossible. Is he actually reading?..._ Dawn wondered_; Is this the real Fluffy?..._

Finally noticing her, Barry flinched as if a rock had been chucked at his dimwitted head. "Hey, Dawn!" he yelled, his cheeks pulled taut– the definite sign that he was hiding something. "Did you come to study, too?"

_Running off like that... Is that all you have to say to me now, Fluffy?_ Dawn boiled silently._ And why are you giving me your 'suspicious face'? _

"I went ahead and memorized everything that was up on the blackboard," he boasted impressively. "After all, it's a Trainer's job to avoid having their precious pokemon hurt in battle, right?"

_I don't know._ Dawn scratched her leg, fighting back an irritated scowl._ It's too early in the morning for me to think about these things._

Barry posed dynamically, throwing back his scarf. "And... I have something to tell you," he said, pausing. With such a display of hesitance, Dawn instantly knew that he was certainly up to no good.

"I've decided that since we're now RIVALS... I'll be traveling alone!" Barry proclaimed, his voice booming.

Dawn's arms dropped at her side, her teeth clenching as if they were held in place by mortar._ Rivals?..._

If she had been holding an object in her hand, it would've been crushed._ Where do you get these dumb ideas, Fluffy?_

_Would it be legal for me to express how angry I am right now?_ For a moment, Dawn turned into an inanimate, stone object, deeply frightening Barry into nervous shivering.

"So, Dawn, what brings you?" Barry quivered slightly, regaining strength in his voice. Dawn, however, grabbed him by his coat collar, yanking him close and staring him down.

_Fluffy... Don't screw with my escape plan. _Her cold eyes pierced right through him._ Ok?_

"Huh?" Barry cried out, gawking innocently like a child about to be disciplined._ I've made her angry somehow! She's really angry! Really! What am I going to do?...!_

"Ah!" He yelled out, surprising Dawn into letting him go. "I've got something for you!" He stuffed a handful of pamphlets in her face.

"What is this?" She asked, standing back to snatch up the thick stack of papers.

"Score!" Barry threw up his arms. "It's a Town Map!"

_You mean Town Maps._ Dawn voided her angry expression._ A whole bunch of them. Why did you take so many? ...Do you have a pamphlet fetish? Just like a little kid who grabs a handful when they go to a theme park, doctor's office, or museum..._ As she thought these things, though, she remained woefully silent.

"I know you like these a lot," Dawn finally spoke at last, fishing out a single pamphlet and leaning the extras against the blackboard. "But **we** only need _one_." She strongly emphasized this point by pushing against him.

"Uh... But I–" Barry's eyes rested on the abandoned map stack– his blood rushing from Dawn's close presence, and his happiness surging from her pushy, demanding tone.

_But. I know the true reason for why we're running away;_ Barry realized painfully._ Dawn, you've always been lying to me like this, so..._

Ignoring her, he brushed past her and grabbed a map of his own. "I'll take one, anyways," he exclaimed stubbornly. "Duuun-duun-dun-duuuun!" he sang, holding it high above his blond head.

His ridiculous accomplishment silenced the whole classroom. Everyone stopped to stare, even the bickering youngster and lass.

_Idiot!_ Dawn went livid. _This isn't a video game! I won't let you do whatever you want anymore! I've changed... I'm a new person... _

_I'm no longer the servant of Fluffy!_

"Hmm... Well, according to the Town Map, I guess Oreburgh City is where I should be going next," Barry uttered to himself, rubbing his poofy head at an animalistic speed. "There's a gym, so it'd be perfect for raising the pokemon I just caught."

Dawn fell inactive with uncertainty. Though she had decided to take control of her destiny, she was still unsure of how to go about it. And her lack of assertiveness didn't help, either.

"Well, I'm on the road to becoming the greatest Trainer of all time!" Barry broadcasted, bending his knees and pulling his fists to his sides– apparently about to bust out some karate moves.

_I actually don't want to leave you at all, Dawn!_ He fought back his heartfelt tears._ But I have to be strong. _

_It's not possible at this very moment... but I'll definitely become someone you'll want be with forever!_

_I know I can do it! Because Dad always told me, 'If you try your best no matter what... You can do anything!'_

_'Any dream is obtainable! If nothing's happening, it's only because you're being too damn lazy.'_

"See you around!" Barry declared rebelliously, turning away from her.

Dawn's arms shook uncertainly– a cold fire razing up her spine._ Here you are again, Fluffy, making grand plans and dashing my own,_ she fumed; I_ was the one who wanted to be free... _

_But Fluffy comes first, little Fluffy always tries his best, so he deserves everything he wants, however, that fact..._

Lashing her arm out, she slammed it forward.

–_really annoys me!_

Pounding the blackboard, her fist stopped, a hair's length in front of Barry's nose. Pinned in place, Barry froze, the blackboard still rattling behind him.

"Huh?...!" Barry buzzed, thoroughly shaken by Dawn's violence. "Wha–"

Dawn slammed her palm on the other side, trapping him between her arms. Pushing her face into his, she calmed her quickened breathing._ Life isn't so easy, boy!_ She secretly wished to say this aloud to him:_ You've been living in a box. The world doesn't actually revolve around you. In this twisted, lonesome place..._

_You're only just Fluffy!_

But she held back her tongue."...You're coming with me," she said slowly, her voice raising. "...We're traveling together."

Completely overwhelmed, Barry nodded compliantly, his heart pounding faster than his throat could swallow._ I... like this kind of Dawn even more!_ he suddenly realized.

"Role reversal to the fifth degree!" Lass Catrina declared, pointing at them as if they had committed some sort of crime.

"Huh?" Dawn sweated uncomfortably, looking over her shoulder at the schoolgirl. _What is she talking about?..._

_Well... whatever. Hopefully Fluffy will obey me now, and that's what counts._

Looking back at Barry, Dawn found that he had assumed a quiet manner, almost as if he was waiting for her. With his eyes closed delicately, his face was tilted up in her direction.

_Why are his lips pursed?_ Dawn wondered momentarily. "...No way..." she muttered and pulled away, rejecting him.

"Guuu..." Barry fell to the ground in despair.

"Oy... Let's go..." Dawn muttered, stuffing her hands into her coat pockets. "If you listen to me, I'll serve you tea and cake for breakfast."

"Really?" Barry jumped back to life, his hands clasped together and his eyes shining.

"Yeah."

"All I have to do is be good?" Barry pondered, furrowing his eyebrows seriously.

_No... This isn't romantic at all! _Lass Catrina held her head, her whole being trembling in revulsion. _This unrequited love... I can see why Barry was crying now! This girl..._

_She's more like a big brother!_

_This bizarre anomaly is an affront to all romance stereotypes! Order must be restored... Something must be done!_

Making up her mind, the lass marched over to Barry. Grasping the boy's shoulder, she looked up at him solemnly.

"That girl... You love her, right?" Catrina asked.

"Ha? Uh," Barry looked away, his face pluming with redness. "Huuh?...!" He pointed at his nose.

"It's ok, I understand." She patted his shoulder. Watching Dawn stop at the door– Catrina stood on her tiptoes and landed a smooch on Barry's cheek– right in front of her.

Barry froze, mystified by the schoolgirl's action.

"This is to help you out," Catrina whispered to him. "You know, in romance novels and comics... This always makes the girl fall for the guy! I know my material."

"Oh, I see now..." Barry realized, grinning in return. "Thanks!"

_Girls are so weird!_

He immediately looked at Dawn, eagerly anticipating her response. What he found, however, was a brutal smile on her face. Laughing into her hand and repressing her grin, Dawn turned away, ashamed by her own display of humor.

"She laughed at me..." Barry broke down, suddenly unsure of himself.

_What does that even mean?...!_

"You done?" Dawn said blankly, holding the door open for him. He followed behind her obediently, drained of all hope.

"I give up... For them, it's impossible!" Lass Catrina lamented. "Nothing in the way of love was accomplished!"

Youngster Dan laid stuttering behind her, curled up in a ball on the floor._ Is it too late?... Cat, she... No! I need to tell her how I feel! Right away!_

* * *

"Let me heal your pokemon for you," Angie smiled at the black belt trainer, presenting her healing platter to him.

_What's wrong with these people? _The maid secretly thought as she loaded the pokeballs into the muffin pan-like device.

_Taking on the Battle Tower at 3 in the morning... Are they really that desperate? That old superstition about pokemon driving trainers insane must be true... Because these people are lunatics!_

"Miss Angie," A formal voice rang in her earpiece. "I have handed Miss Dawn the Vs. Recorder as requested. She rendezvoused with Mr. Barry as well. In this way, it is now possible for you to monitor both. It is no longer necessary for me to observe. Since my assistance is no longer required, I request leave."

"Ah, Looker?" Angie tilted down her earpiece's microphone stick. "You really did it? And they're together now? Did you notice anything odd?"

"Yes. At first, Miss Dawn was not with Mr. Barry," Looker continued. "She was in suit with a dark haired boy. Lucas, I believe his name was."

"...I see," Angie's eyes grew dim. _My assignment may be over sooner than I thought. This doesn't bode well..._

"Thanks for helping us out on such short notice. We appreciate it," Angie said, exhaling deeply and tugging at her frilly apron.

"I am glad I was of use to Mr. Palmer and you. My gratitude lies with you both. Please watch your health, Miss Angie. Your mission has only just begun," Looker spoke. "Over and out."

Angie's earpiece popped with static and silenced._ Right... I was given a_ mission... The maid clenched her fist to her chest in determination._ A really weird one!_

_But that's to be expected, because the Tower Tycoon is really weird... And definitely questionable– much like this whole Battle Tower._

_Ever since I took this job, my morality has been greying. What's truly wrong anymore? Isn't everything ok as long as it makes you happy?_

_All around me, weird people are doing crazy things just to accomplish their dreams..._

"Here you go," she said cheerfully, presenting the black belt trainer back his pokeballs; plucking them out, he charged automatically into the next battle.

"When I close my eyes, I can visualize your defeat!" he blasted at his opponent, a little girl hugging a massive inner tube.

"The beach sand is so hot!" she yelled her senseless battle cry. "It makes me go, 'Ouch, ouch, ouch!"

_My intelligence just sharply decreased! _Angie cringed, looking away._ This little girl... where are her parents? Is she from another oddball trainer family?_

_...I shouldn't question everything so much. The pay here is excellent. And surely, these are all good people. I mean... they're doing what they love most. _

_As for me..._

_Well, I don't know what I'm doing. It's just my job._

_So as requested by the Tower Tycoon himself, I will 'Monitor Dawn and discover why she doesn't want to marry Barry!' _

_But Palmer, if he's anything like you, I can imagine why._

Flipping over her muffin pan of a platter, she revealed a computer screen underneath it; being sort of Vs. Recorder in its own right, it was directly connected to Dawn's.

"Now for work..." Angie decided, tapping its touch screen. Without warning, Palmer's voice blared in her earpiece.

"Angie! It's an emergency!" he yelled desperately.

She nearly dropped her computer platter in fright. "Sir? What is it, Sir?" she demanded, her knees shaking.

"Barry, he's..." The Tower Tycoon continued, "he's grown taller! He DWARFS Dawn! I can see him through his Poketch... I can hear him as well! This is the true spirit of today's technology!"

An unexplainable heat gathered in Angie's face._ Do you enjoy making me feel like a chased animal?...!_

"Oh, is that so, Sir?" Angie laughed politely. "When was the last time you visited your son, anyway?"

"A... year ago..." Palmer exhaled and rumbled with deep guilt; "Even though the engagement is postponed, I'm still returning to Twinleaf to visit my family. In a few hours, in fact. I was hoping to see my son then, but I suppose that's postponed as well..."

"Your family?" Angie questioned. _Only your wife is waiting for you now. Barry is an only child, so the house will be practically bare when you get there... So what family do you speak of?_

"Yes, my family! My wife mostly, but Gilroy and Johanna will also be there," he explained sharply, clearly irritated by Angie's question. "Because of them, I've been eagerly anticipating this trip for a very long time!"

"Oh, right... Sorry Sir, I was just confused! Because most people don't trap their family under mountains of debt," Angie chirped. "Oh! I've had Gilroy's account fined that forty-million as requested. Please have a safe trip, I'll take care of everything while you're away."

The Tower Tycoon fell silent.

"While you're at it..." he began awkwardly. "Give Gilroy another pay raise and a bonus!" He declared powerfully, hanging up.

Angie's mouth dropped open.

_Isn't that like... _

_Pouring water back and forth between two buckets?_

She struggled with the metaphor, but it made sense. The Tower Tycoon flung money around like water.

_How did this man ever become wealthy?_

"Rich people..." She massaged her forehead, bringing her computer screen closer._ Back to work. _

_What is Dawn up to? To have a father like Gilroy..._

_I hope I can understand her properly._

* * *

Kneeling on the cave floor, Dawn sat atop her legs. "Let's rest... But only for a few hours," she told Barry, setting down her duffel. Dazed by all that had happened to her so far, she looked dispassionately at the Vs. Recorder poking out from her duffel. Reaching over it, she pulled out her newly-bought stationary.

_I still need to write a letter to my parents, but what should I say? I can't tell them my plans... Only just enough to let them know that we're ok... And that I still love them._

"Hm..." Barry looked around him, puzzled by his uncomfortable surroundings. "There's no pillows here!"

"None," Dawn said. "We're in a cave."

"That's no good! But you know what? ...This space would be TONS comfier with a mat right here and some cushions there, there, and there," he considered quickly, pointing all over the place before sliding down next to her. "Did you bring any?" He shivered.

"Hn. Nope." Dawn shrugged, unfolding her stationary. "I can give you my coat, though... You look like you need it."

_I discovered several flaws and advantages in my escape plan. So I'm changing it, _Dawn thought;_ I'm holding Fluffy ransom._

"I can't take your coat!" Barry yelled, flailing his arms. "You're a girl! If anything, I should be giving you my coat!"

_Oh? But then you'd freeze to death and be even more of a burden..._ Dawn blinked slowly and yawned. "Settle down... You've been working too hard," she told him. "A Trainer needs to conserve his energy so he may always be prepared for battle."

"...Really?"

"Yeah," she blatantly lied. In truth, she wasn't sure what a Trainer was supposed to do. She was no expert, but she had watched enough TV specials to know how to at least sound wise.

"Shff–"

Something fluffy and heavy fell into her lap. Surprised, she looked down to find Barry's blond head, snoring and resting on her thighs.

"Hey..." Dawn frowned, bouncing her knees to try and wake him up. But knowing that it was pointless, she soon stopped. Ever since she could remember, Barry was a master at falling asleep. Sometimes she would worry that he had randomly bumped his head, but in actuality it was only the effects of his hyperactivity.

_Even your own body can't keep up with you._

"Idiot..." Dawn muttered, feeling empowered by insulting him aloud._ You were running circles around me on the road outside, and busy getting us into all kinds of battles... To have so much energy, but then fall asleep before me... You have some nerve, Fluffy._

Unfolding her stationary, Dawn began to compose her letter:

_Dear Mother and Father,_

_I'm getting along well with the skills you taught me, so don't worry. And don't look for us._

As she moved slightly, Barry's itchy blonde hair poked her in the thighs. "Tch... Even in your sleep... you're annoying..." she noted, sticking her hand through his hair to reach the source of her itch. Scratching her bare thigh, her hand stopped in suddenly awareness. Barry's face, which was always yelling loudly, was silent and cozy in her lap.

_When he's sleeping, he looks so peaceful..._ Thinking this, Dawn's fingers lingered in the boy's puffy nest of a hairdo– and– as if it were a small animal, she suddenly became conscious of how cute, soft and warm it was. Barry's hair– the hair that she always saw as devil horns– was gently thawing her icy fingers.

Pulling her hand away, she grabbed her chest. Underneath her coat, something was pulsing with a hot electric current. "Weird..." she said, trembling. _I must be pretty tired... For a moment, I thought..._

_He was kinda..._

She shook it off and proceeded writing her letter to her parents:

_That's right, I have Barry. I promise to keep him safe, but I have demands. _

_If you try to find us, I'll seal him in a barrel and kick him down a waterfall. _

_Also, inform Barry's dad that I'll release his son as soon as our family debts are excused. _

_Until you comply, I'm keeping Barry._

_With love, _

_Your daughter_

Folding the paper, she stuffed it into its matching envelope and sat still.

_...What am I even doing?..._

Overhead, Zubat cries trickled across the rocky ceiling.

_Hm... My legs are going numb._ Dawn fidgeted. Not wanting to disturb Barry's rest, she remained still and watched over him, studying his side profile. Slowly, her eyes closed.

_~To Be Continued~_


	8. Chapter 8: Aerial Ace

Hanging up his red beret on his bedside lamp, Lucas breathed sharply as he unzipped his jacket. Though his movements were slight, he managed to make enough noise to cause stirring in the nearby bed; the quietness of the dark morning hour made everything sound that much louder.

"Huu, big brother?" a sleepy voice yawned. A brown-haired little girl with pigtails and a chubby face greeted him. Rubbing her eyes, she blinked unsteadily as she pushed away her blankets.

"Go back to sleep, Lucia," he warned her, flopping off his grey rubber overshoes and kicking them away.

"Did you catch... catch anymore... for the thingy?" his sister asked slowly, unable to remember what a pokedex was called.

"No," Lucas stopped, leaning against the wall and unlacing his sneakers. _Of course I didn't. You have to go on a journey for that apparently. Yes, I can't catch anything but lame pokemon, like Bidoof and Starly. There's nothing on these routes! But Dawn, she..._

"Dad was talking about tha thingy again tonight... And you. You need to catch more."

"Yeah, I know."

"But you haven't caught any in a long, looong time..."

"I'm working on it. I even worked on it a bit tonight."

"Dad said, you work on it a lot, but–"

"Go back to sleep!" Lucas snapped, embroiled with resentment. _Don't rub it in! _

_Dawn,_ he thought suddenly;_ after just receiving her pokedex from Rowan, somehow managed to catch a Snover. A Snover on these routes... A pokemon I've never even seen before._

_Outclassing me so soon... I wanted to cheer Dawn on, but I couldn't even congratulate her. I don't want her to get ahead of me... This ugly feeling wasn't what I had in mind..._ Steeping in guilt, Lucas's shoulders drooped. His little sister, frightened by his outburst, burrowed under her covers and whimpered.

"Hey," he soothed, regaining his gentle manner. Walking over to Lucia's bed, he stopped. "I'm just tired. And a bit stressed out. Ok?" He patted her blanketed head.

"Hmm..." She muffled out a yawn. "Fine."

Narrowing his eyes, Lucas turned away. Crawling into his adjacent bed, he slid under his covers and yanked them over– not even bothering to change out of his street clothes.

* * *

_Fluffy. This ransom letter I wrote... Does this make me a bad person?_

Standing on the edge of a snow slope, Dawn stared down at the envelop in her hand. Flipping it over, she slid out its enclosed letter. Unfolding it and squinting her eyes, she couldn't recognize or read anything on its changed surface. Even the stationary was inexplicably different.

_Ah... I must be in a dream, _she realized._ In dreams, things like this are no good. I'm too dumb to read, and if I try to run..._ Crushing the letter in her hand, her arms flopped aside. All around her, snowflakes wafted down as specks of lavender light; their unnaturalness only aided her suspicions. Picking up her dragging heels, she attempted to run down the slope– instead struggling desperately and moving forward in slow motion.

"Hah, it's a dream," Dawn said, panting and giving up midway. Sitting down in the cold snow, she watched as the glistening specks of light fell and evaporated once hitting the blank ground all around her.

_I just have to wait a little more till I wake up... _

_Who says 'dreams are free'? Dreams... at least as I know them, have very specific laws. _

_Even my mind won't allow me to do whatever I please..._

Closing her eyes, she thought she could feel something warm on her cheek, something reminiscent of a person's touch. Or even a kiss, though she couldn't place it. Mother's was always rushed and Father's was rare, but this one in particular was different. Taking a long time with itself, it was slow and of a warmer nature. Unsettled, she pulled awake.

Opening her bleary eyes, Dawn became aware of the sunlight creeping through the cave around her– the cold pitted floor, her numbs legs, and Barry's impending face.

"–Hwa!" she emitted, tumbling backwards. Lying on her back, she blinked and straightened her mouth, ashamed by her loud outburst. Reaching up slowly, her fingers touched her right cheek, anxiously expecting to find a clue there.

_Could it have been him?..._

"You awake yet? Wake up!" Barry sang loudly, full of energy as usual. "Let's wake up! Get awoken~ waking up! Tea and cake, tea and cake!" The tune to which he sang with was a familiar one, but she couldn't recognize its name. She was that tired.

"Gha..." Dawn silently groaned, crawling to her knees and holding her stiff face. _A warm kiss... No way could it have been Fluffy... It was slow and meaningful... Maybe I was dreaming of Lucas._

"–Tea and cake!" Barry got up and did his usual dance, prancing from leg to leg like an armless Wooper struggling to lunge out of a tall bucket.

"Alright. Settle down," Dawn told him, bending over her duffel and taking out supplies: A battery powered hot plate, a mini kettle, a bottle of water, tea, two mugs, and a plastic package of chocolate covered cupcakes– the junk food kind.

_I guess I should stuff this in further..._ Dawn realized, shoving the spying Vs. Recorder deeper into her pink duffel.

"Hey, that's not the kinda cake I had in mind!" Barry protested, pointing at the scrunched package. "I want the super-moist, vanilla sponge cake type with freshly whipped cream, rum nougats and strawberries!"

_Such ridiculously expensive taste..._ Dawn disapproved. "You don't have to eat it then. I will," she said blankly, splashing the water bottle's contents into the mini kettle. _Is it wise to give Fluffy this much caffeine?_

"Wait-wait!" Barry agonized, reconsidering the meager cake. "I still want it. I'm really hungry. In fact I... I want to eat it right now!" He jumped, ready to tear into the package.

"No no," Dawn warned him, crossing her arms. She slid the cupcakes away before he could attack them.

"Nahroooo..." he droned in disappointment, looking down like a punished animal.

Seeing Barry wait patiently for his breakfast was almost a mind-altering experience for Dawn. Hesitantly handing him his tea, she watched anxiously as he sipped it, for she had some well-justified worries about giving him such a breakfast. _So far, no adverse effects,_ she observed.

Sipping from his mug, Barry pulled it away and curved his mouth in dissatisfaction. "This needs more sugar," he told her, handing the mug back. Hiding her inner scorn, Dawn obliged him one more scoop.

"Two more scoops." He held his fingers up and motioned.

"Eat your cupcake..." She dismissed his request. _I already gave you four. Two more scoops makes six. That's more than enough sugar! And all the caffeine... This can't end well!_

"Waa, I want more sugar," Barry whined quietly, turning away and munching his cupcake. "Om nom nom." Glancing from aside, he furtively watched as Dawn made her own tea.

"Did you sleep well?" Dawn asked him suddenly. "Considering you didn't have a decent pillow."_ Yes, in the past, I remember him being unable to sleep if he didn't have his special pillow. __Because of that, sleepovers were usually at his house... He's always been such a baby._

"Of course I slept well! It's because your legs are big and cushy!" Barry announced sporadically, holding his arms out and throwing tea everywhere. He smiled proudly at his proclamation, completely unknowing of the metaphorical cold water that he had just dumped on Dawn.

"I... see..." Dawn quieted. Hunching over the hot plate, she sunk into a world drowning with darkness. _My legs are fat? _she wondered. _Yes, I already knew that... I carelessly eat so much junk food, that's why. But it still hurts to hear it from someone else... Ah. Should I be wearing pants? My mother always insisted on skirts, but her preference doesn't matter anymore. Fluffy, my legs are something I take to heart. Would you make fun of me if you knew?_

"Hm, is something wrong?" Barry asked, tilting his head sideways. _She's acting kind of weird! Does she... suspect something?...!_

"Oh. I was just wondering," Dawn lied, pulling her drink over her face to mask her nervousness. "Why that Lass kissed you earlier. It was kind of random."_ Thinking about it now... That really is a good mystery. Why would anyone willingly kiss Fluffy?_

"That?" Barry grinned victoriously, pointing at his nose. "She clearly thought I was cute. What do you think?" _Are you jealous yet?_

"I don't know what to think," Dawn replied blankly, clinking a metal spoon in her mug. Conversation had never been one of her strong points; she perceived this fact as her mouth disappeared behind her drink.

"Geez, you're so uncertain about everything! Don't you ever have an opinion?"

"...It's too strong," Dawn said to herself, reaching for the mini kettle.

"Your opinion?"

"No, my tea," she concluded, pouring more water into her mug and forcing the both of them into another block of awkward silence.

Fidgeting uncomfortably, Barry finished his cupcake and downed his sweet tea. Tapping his feet impatiently, he restlessly searched for something to say. "Well! This place sure is a cave! Just because of that, I want to get out of here," Barry he said vapidly, standing up to stretch. "Oreburgh is just beyond here, right? Pack up, let's get going! I wanna run there right now, but I'm waiting on you. You're always so slow, you know? Doesn't that make you want to move even faster?"

"...Look before you leap," Dawn monotonously delivered her solid piece of advice. She had said the first thing that came to mind in an attempt to sound opinionated, but it only barely followed the current conversation.

"Whatever." Barry gave up, confused by her random statement. "You may be slow now, but one day I'll train you to move faster." _And one day... We won't have to keep secrets from each other like this, _he thought._ We're on a pokemon journey, huh? Yeah right. When will you admit that we're just running away? I'll keep playing along for now, though... If that's what you want, Dawn._

"I'm not a pokemon." Dawn set her mug down, stuffing her cupcake into her mouth. Pouring the tea kettle's water back into its crumpled bottle, she began packing away her supplies. Even though they were close to Oreburgh City, she felt that they were still too close to home.

"Fine, fine. Of course you're not," Barry chuckled arrogantly, closing his eyes and crossing his arms in an attempt to be cool. "If you were a pokemon, things would be _a lot_ easier."

"Hn..." Dawn sat still and didn't answer clearly. She was uncertain as to what his offhand remark even meant.

"Alright, so here's how it is. Listen up. I'm racing you to Oreburgh!" Barry announced, jabbing his finger in her face. "Last one there is a Bad Egg!"

* * *

Dismounting his steel winged Skarmory, the middle-aged veteran trainer pulled his briefcase along and silently stiffened his stern face. Having not yet heard of his daughter's exploit, he was still relatively relaxed.

_Finally. I want out of this business suit and back in my keikogi,_ he thought simply. Adjusting his business tie and pulling back his long, greying hair, he pushed his house's front door open and entered his living room. Instantly facing his wife's back and her blue bouffant of hair, he stopped, waiting for her to turn around and greet him.

"We've got a lot to discuss," she told him unflinchingly. "It's about Dawn."

"Is that so? Where is she?" he responded critically, leaning on the door frame and pulling off his leather oxford shoes. "Did you not tell her that I was arriving home today? She should be here to greet me."

"That's exactly what we need to discuss," Johanna turned around, finally facing her husband. "...We think she ran away."

"What?" The veteran huffed, not wanting to put up with such nonsense after his long flight home. "What is this 'we'? ...Are you a queen now?"

"**We** think Dawn ran away. Together with **Barry**."

Struck speechless, the stern man silently aligned his shoes against the wall and walked away to his room. Shutting the door behind him, he didn't appear until minutes later– dressed in a white kimono top and long, baggy red pants.

"Come sit down." Johanna withheld a sigh, patting the cushion beside her. Kneeling down atop it with great dignity, the veteran composed himself before saying anything about Dawn running away.

"... ... ...Are you sure?" he finally asked, still in disbelief about the whole thing.

"Yes, Gilroy! She ran away! Moh," Johanna whined angrily, growing childish and slapping at his knees. "Is that all you– have– to– say about this?" She broke up her sentence with each petty slap.

"Ow! What about you? Is that all you have to say to me?...!" He demanded accusingly, seizing her wrist and holding it away. "To your poor husband who works long hours, away from his home and family, while eating an unhealthy diet? You greet him like this? Where's the food?"

"Your daughter's missing, and you're grumbling about food?...!"

"My stomach's growling, and you expect me to make conversation?...!"

Pulling her wrist back, Johanna shoved him and frowned when he hardly budged at all. Retaliating, he moved in close and kissed her. "Such a fussy wife," he finally said, standing up and entering the kitchen in hopes of raiding the fridge. "I'll fix us something to eat... Then we'll talk."

"Don't think you can distract me with such a simple tactic!" She stood up, flailing her arms. "Your daughter ran away! She's out there in the cold this very moment... and the Kurotsugus are furious with the disappearance of their son!"

"Dawn will be alright. And Palmer will survive."

"Dawn, she... she hates us now!" Johanna's strong facade finally broke. Holding her face, she began crying and bawling noisily like a little girl.

"Don't cry... You're just hungry." Gilroy reserved his panic, abandoning a bag of rice in favor of simply patting his wife on the back.

"You... you... Stupid!"

Before their argument could be escalated, a deep thud resonated throughout the roof and the ceiling crumbled away; tan, fluffy wings fanned on through– bringing a gust of wind and debris along with it.

"This noxious wind..." Gilroy gasped as he fought to shield his eyes. Instantly snapping from her tantrum, Johanna braced herself while a sharp-beaked, long necked bird tore into the dining room. Atop its back stood a man in a long, billowing, pea green coat.

"Arriving on the wings of the avian king!" Palmer bellowed. Unfolding his arms, he leapt and somersaulted through the air, landing before them in a kneel. Slowly, he stood up and leaned impressively. "The Tower Tycoon has arrived." He held his chin at an angle. "Long time, no see," he said, flashing a gleaming smile from his ultra white teeth.

Blue-faced and shaking with livid bewilderment, Johanna muttered and cried like an abandoned pet who had just been tossed into a river. "My... my... house..." She could barely speak.

"What the hell was that for, you wrinkled windbag?...!" Gilroy yelled with rising indignation.

"That was for stealing my son, you talking suit!" Palmer immediately shifted his attitude, growing fierce and practically jabbing his finger in Gilroy's face.

"Stop pointing at me, that's rude!"

"Not until you give me back my cute and adorable son!"

"I don't have your son, you idiot! I only just learnt of the situation!"

"And take back what you said about my winkles! A king doesn't wrinkle, he creases!"

"Wrinkles are wrinkles, old fart!"

"Windbag, that I can take, but calling me wrinkled is inexcusable!" Palmer laughed bitterly, holding his arm in emotional pain. "I no longer feel guilty about fining you that forty-million..."

"What?...! Fining me again?" Gilroy blasted. "Foolish fool! I can only pocket so many misreported tax credits and fraudulent business account funds!"

"I knew it... I knew there was a shortfall in our company earnings," Palmer smiled simply before raging like a cyclone once again. "You fiend! Just for that, I'm fining you _twenty-eight billion pokedollars_!"

"Arrogant scum! I had to– there were expenses to pay! Even now, my roof has to be repaired, no thanks to you! And your son recently broke my daughter's computer... for the fifth time!"

"Well your daughter recently broke my son's heart... for the fiftieth time!"

"You leave Dawn out of this!"

"Stop ignoring my Barry!"

"No you!"

"Your face!"

"Ha, my face, huh? Well that green jacket makes you look like a crackfaced Politoed!"

Highly insulted, Palmer rose a personal attack against his rival. "That's atrocious...! Your hair is greying!"

"What?...! It is not."

"All over, yes it is– hair is turning white. That's what you get for being so full of yourself!"

Highly confused, Gilroy ran his hand through his long hair. "You said it was greying, not turning white–"

"THAT'S ENOUGH," Johanna blasted, having more than enough with their pointless argument. Gilroy and Palmer cringed in fear as she lowered her face, seemingly distorting the air around her like an open volcano. "Any more nonsense out of you idiots, and I'm packing up my bags and leaving... FOREVER."

"Johanna!" they both cried out, terrified by the heartlessness of her declaration. They weren't left with much time to clear the situation, however, for the front door blasted open beside them.

"Darliiiing–" a cute voice cried out as a stout and curvy woman crashed through it, distracting Palmer indefinitely.

"Brenda!" He joyously held out his arms to her.

"Look what I won at this week's Pokemon Fan Club!" she cried happily, shoving a Bonsly doll in his face. "Isn't it cute, isn't it?"

"Not as cute as you are!"

"Ah haha~!"

"I think I'm going to be sick." Gilroy turned away. Angered by his rudeness, Johanna backhanded his arm and cleared her throat to alert everyone in the room that there was now business to attend to.

"Right. Now that everyone's gathered here," Palmer said, finally regaining his mellow mood. "I have something important to tell you all..."

_~To be continued~_

* * *

Yes, Barry's mom is a Pokéfan. Go to his house and look at her sprite. I'm not kidding...

For reasons to be explained later, Dawn's father is a Veteran trainer. Does that make him only half OC?...

Angie is that lady who heals your pokemon in the battle tower. I figured she must be pretty amazing to handle all that craziness day in and day out.

Special thanks to **Rainer Grimaldi** for the reviews **Wintermuffler** for the encouragement!


	9. Chapter 9: Rock Smash

Sunlight poured down over Dawn, heating up the padded shoulders of her fluffy snow coat.

Trudging out of the cave and out onto the short cliff outside, she studied the grimy town before her: several blocks of buildings walled in by metal walls and mountains. Frustrated by the heat, and unbuttoning her coat, she pulled her scarf loose and looked around.

Barry was nowhere to be found.

_I'm sure Fluffy ran to the gym. After all, he wanted to get there late last night_, she thought as she stepped down the cliff's cement stairs. _What an impatient creature... Hm. Where exactly is the gym, anyways?_

Just as she reached the bottom step, a nameless youngster greeted her and began badgering her to see her gym badges.

"Look. I don't have any," Dawn muttered, opening her badge case and presenting it to the nosy boy.

"You'd better do something about that, then!" He grabbed her arm eagerly, a dopey smile on his face. "I'll take you to the Pokemon Gym."

_I guess this is convenient. _Dawn dragged behind him, uncomfortably. However, she wasn't sure why he wanted to help her so badly.

"I guess I should say: welcome to Oreburgh City," the boy said, proudly leading her. "My name is–"

Dawn zoned out, gazing at the dusty grey dirt floating off the ground and drifting through the air. _A mining town? _Feeling compelled to sneeze, she closed her eyes and scrunched her nose.

"Huh?" The youngster stopped right before the gym doors, loosening his grip on her wrist. "There's someone there... and he looks kinda crazy."

Opening her eyes, Dawn flinched when she found Barry hunching forward and glaring at them intensely. His low snarling and constricted pupils reminded her of the wild pokemon which often leapt out from the grass to attack. Visibly frightened, the youngster silently released Dawn's arm and fell back.

"Barry." Dawn approached him. Lifting her arm, she pinched his nose, tightly holding it, and snapping him out of his animal-like trance.

"Hunh?" Barry warbled nasally, confused and alarmed by the obstruction to his nose. "Oh, it's you, Dawn! You finally got here?" Despite Dawn's grip on his nose, he continued. "You're slow... like ALWAYS. But anyway, the Gym Leader's tough! Like, seriously serious! If the Gym Leader's this tough, I wonder how he compares to my dad..." It was at this time that Dawn noticed how Barry's arm was stuck.

In the gym doors.

"What the?" Dawn moved around him, pulling at his orange striped jacket sleeve. Next, she dug her fingers into the double doors' crack and tried forcing apart them apart. No amount of strength would make them budge.

"Huh?" Barry woke from his reverie; clearly he was homesick and missing his parents. "I just drifted there. ...What are you doing?"

_Fluffy. _Dawn gritted her teeth, unzipping his jacket. _YOUR ARM IS STUCK IN A DOOR. What is this nonsense? Struggle OR at LEAST be worried!_

"How did this happen? Tch. Take off your jacket," she brusquely told him, assessing the damage. "We need to get you loose."

"Oh yeah!" Barry finally remembered, holding his arm back as she began slipping off his jacket. "The Gym Leader's gone off to the coal mine. I tried to stop him, but then this place got locked up in the middle of it all. Those gym trainers are such sticklers! Yeah, so. If you want to take on the Gym Leader, you'd better go off to the mine!"

He kept blathering all the while as she tugged and pulled at his arm. By rolling his jacket sleeve, she almost managed to tug him out from the door– that is– until something big and plastic blocked his wrist from being pulled out between the gap. Upon closer inspection, Dawn realized that it was Barry's orange Poketch.

_This reminds me of the time that he got his hand stuck in a pickled berry jar..._

"Dang," she said, and rather emotionlessly at that. She tried to reach and unlatch the wristband without any success. "We need to cut it off."

"WAH?" Barry jumped, suddenly filled with horror. "You mean my WHOLE hand?"

"No. Your poketch." _Though... I'll keep your great idea in mind._

"Uh?" Barry whimpered, moments before struggling like a Magikarp stuck on a fishing line. "NOOOOO," he wailed, pushing her. "Anything but THAT. Go away!"

_Spoiled brat! _Dawn stumbled backwards, furiously holding her breath._ Are you more concerned about a watch than your OWN ARM?_ It took sheer willpower to keep from pummeling his poofy head in.

"NO! Not my custom made, one-of-a-kind, state-of-the-art poketch. NOT THAT. It has a built in utility light, one terabytes of storage, mini scissors, a global BPS system– whatever that is– and it won first place at the electronics premier show in Jubilife. And it cost twenty million pokedollars to develop and it led to the creation of the fancier poketchs on the market," Barry went on and on, lamenting about how rare and expensive it was. "And my dad gave it to me!"

To Dawn's ears, it just came off as covert bragging.

"Whatever." Dawn walked away. "I'm going to the mine now. Stay here." _I'll have to get the Gym Leader to unlock these doors..._

"Stay?" Barry angrily yelled after her. "As if I can GO anywhere."

"Ha. That's a good one." Dawn realized, shuffling away. "I'm kind of surprised, actually." Musing over Barry's relatively quick wit, she slowly wandered off.

* * *

Holding a jumble of cables in his hand, Palmer yanked the TV forward, spinning it around on its stand before jamming the cables into its back.

"HEY. Be more careful with my TV," Gilroy demanded.

"Shush!" Palmer dismissed him. "I already know that you don't CARE about my boy. However, don't you care about your daughter?"

"That girl is in big trouble right now!" Gilroy ranted. "So she should enjoy her little retreat for now! while she still can–"

"–DEAR." Johanna practically flew down the stairs. "It's horrible!" She held up Dawn's blue laptop. "Dawn sent us a letter."

"Well isn't that good?" Brenda asked, clasping her plump hands together.

"In any other case, yes, but the contents of this letter is bad!"

Getting up from his fiddling with the TV, Palmer leaned over everyone to read the laptop screen. "Dear Mother and Father," he read aloud; "I'm getting along well with the skills you taught me, so don't worry? And don't look for us?" He laughed resentfully. "What skills? Kidnapping and RANSOM? Are these the 'skills' that you've been teaching your daughter, Gilroy?...!"

"Shut your hole, you wind bag."

"NEVER. Your daughter is threatening to seal MY son in a barrel so that she may KICK him down a waterfall." Sniffing emotionally, Palmer pulled out a ridiculously huge cellphone and held it to his face. "Angie! Locate every waterfall in the region and send out maintainers to guard them!" He paused to listen. "YES. Even ornamental ones." He practically shouted into the plastic brick of a phone before hanging up.

"Can't you just excuse Gilroy and Johanna's debts?" Brenda asked. "That's all that letter is demanding... That's all that Dawn wants!"

Gilroy brought his hands to his face. "It's not just that. It was never that... Dawn... All our debts can't be excused. Money isn't the issue here."

"Dawn knew about today," Johanna said suddenly. "She knew about the arranged marriage. Somehow she found out... It's obvious. That's why she took Barry and ran away, to make a point to us."

"But acting like this... doesn't she understand the destiny bond?" Brenda demanded.

Johanna, Gilroy, and Palmer fell silent.

"I'm sorry. We never told you... that after the incident two years ago, when Dawn had attacked Barry," Gilroy began, "that they had both mysteriously lost their memories about everything... even about what we had told them of the destiny bond... So to prevent a repeat of that incident– of Dawn's outbreak– we never told them about it again."

Brenda clasped her hands to her face in horror. "So Dawn doesn't know now? That if anything happens to Barry, she also..."

Looking down, Palmer crossed his arms. "The question is, would she even care?" he asked.

The color drained from Johanna and Gilroy's faces.

"When Barry was born, Gilroy and Johanna also had a child... as necessitated by the Platinum's curse," Palmer said suddenly. "When it turned out to be a girl, however, we were all greatly surprised. Never in a thousand years tradition had the Platinum family ever produced a female heir." Crouching down, he went back to fiddling with the TV. "We took it as a sign."

Taking out his blocky cellphone once again, he expanded it into a small laptop and flipped up its screen. "For Dawn– a proud girl who has never experienced love and life– is an arranged marriage not a large price to pay?"

He plugged the laptop it into the TV. "To end the Platinum family's curse of servitude, she would rather end her life... she demonstrated that fact well on that day... two years ago."

Turning on the TV, the image flickered in place, revealing the dark insides of a large and empty building.

"Hmm, what's this?" Palmer murmured, unaware of the sullen sense of quiet around him. "Why isn't the BPS displaying Barry?" He smacked his laptop, almost if he expected that to correct it.

"This place," Johanna said, leaning close to observe the live feed streaming on the TV. "It looks very familiar..."

"This makes no sense! Why isn't it moving?" Palmer kept on complaining. "The camera's affixed to my son's arm! It should be bouncing all over the place as usual–"

Palmer suddenly fell silent. "IS MY SON... DEAD?" he howled in agony, cradling his head and bursting into tears. "Gilroy! Your daughter took my son and SHANKED him. This is clearly the final resting place of my dear son's desecrated body–"

"–Don't jump to conclusions!" Gilroy blasted. "And stop your blubbering at once. My daughter is an upstanding young woman. She would never shank anyone without good reason–"

"–yes, because she's a trained killer! Under my order, Darach trained her to be a deadly weapon! What a fatal mistake... This means that she's now gone as well... If I could turn back time–"

"–SHUT... UP." Johanna silenced them.

She pointed a decisive finger at the TV screen. "The camera's moving now. And it's too far off the ground to be on a dead body, so stop panicking."

"Yes. You're right." Gilroy observed. "It seems your son is still doing well, so no need to panic. Dawn is strong, so I'm certain that she's fine as well!"

"It's moving up and down!" Palmer observed frantically. "What does it all mean?"

They continued to watch the live feed, increasingly confounded by the camera's odd movements and fixation in one single spot.

* * *

Barry slid his arm, up and down, struggling with the gym's double doors as he watched for Dawn, who had long since disappear into the far-off mine.

_What if she leaves me here? _He wondered, ill-feelings compounding in my gut. _Maybe... maybe I should've let her cut off my Poketch..._

"Dawn!" he bellowed suddenly; "COME BACK SOON."

Dawn, pounding up the nearly endless steps of the dark and dusty mine, suddenly stopped, looking back over her shoulder. _Weird,_ she thought; _I thought I heard Fluffy's voice behind me... _Biting her lip in exasperation, she mumbled under her breath, "He'd better still be there when I get back."

Further into the mine Dawn traversed, battling her way past two workers who paused from their mining operations to challenge her and Pringles. The little Piplup, strong from fighting countless battles by now, effortlessly bubble blasted her challengers.

At last, Dawn reached the far end of the mine, and turning the corner, heard the booming, harsh sound of two men arguing. Reading the situation as an unfavorable one to walk into, Dawn stopped, leaning against the wall and listening to make sure all was safe.

"I chose Riley first because you're spineless and narrow-minded–" the deepest voice roared, silencing the other; "Just like your mother–"

"–I hate it... hate it... All the time... it comes back to that," the other voice murmured– a voice which sounded more like a young man's; "For all the brawn and passion you have, dad, you lack brawn and delicacy. That's why... that's exactly why she LEFT you."

The father went silent, and soon, beyond the shuffling sound of an escape rope, nothing else was heard.

Curious, Dawn peeked around the corner and saw a bespectacled young man in a hard hat standing there– his shoulders heaving up and down as he held his face. For a moment, Dawn thought he was crying, but he soon pulled his hands away and revealed his dry, composed face.

_Is that the gym leader? _Dawn wondered tensely, still unprepared to confront him. _What a nasty situation... I should pretend like I didn't hear all that just now..._ Lightly smacking her face a few times, she reset her cheeks and mouth into their usual bored expressionlessness– and having done this, she briskly started out from around the corner, acting as if she had just arrived. Despite all this, though, her eyes knowingly searched the face of the young man, and his troubled frown instantly switched into a cheerful smile.

He waived at her in greeting, and Dawn drew closer.

"Ok, stand back and watch this," the young man commanded suddenly, lifting up his pick axe and focusing on the rock beside him. "Using the hidden move Rock Smash, a boulder blocking your way..." Heaving the pick-axe up way up high, he let out a piercing roar– a sorrow-filled howl which pierced the air with its intense soul– and he smashed the rock into fragments.

Dawn, with her spine chilled and the base of her neck prickling– watched the dust settle– breathlessly.

The young man, still holding the pick-axe, and gasping as if he were about to cry, finally let it drop. Turning away from her, he took off his glasses and rubbed at his face– all before gently wiping his lenses clean and re-sitting them on his nose. He turned back around. "Fallen boulders need to be smashed so they're out of the way..."

Clenching her teeth, Dawn looked at cleared area where the boulder once stood. Only one other boulder stood nearby, making her wonder if this was all some kind of metaphor for the young man and his dad.

"If you could get the badge from the gym in town, you'd be able to do this, too," he explained; "Of course, you'd have to beat the gym leader first." Dusting off his black shirt, he grinned and pointed at his chest. "That'd be me!"

Dawn nodded, wordlessly accepting his challenge– and just as silently– followed him back to town, the both of them hiding their troubles behind their mask-like faces.

_~To be continued...~_


	10. Chapter 10: Smack Down

Along the way out of Oreburgh Mine, Dawn held back and let the young man, the gym leader, walk out of sight. With the brisk and distracted manner in which he was walking, it became apparent that he needed a few moments to himself.

_He was arguing with his father, wasn't he? _Dawn thought, uncomfortable with having overheard them; _I simply wonder over what. Though... it isn't my business._

Arriving back at the Oreburgh Gym, Dawn stopped, and after looking around, filled with shaken alarm. Barry was nowhere to be found. _Maybe he went inside, _she considered, pushing past the automatic doors that once detained him.

Studying every aspect of the gym's raised grey walls, platforms and stairs, Dawn walked around, swept two gym trainers with Pringles, and, glancing over everything once more, walked back outside.

Her arms shook at her sides and her face went livid. _Fluffy, _Dawn thought crossly;_ Why have you FORSAKEN me AGAIN?_

Even after searching the whole town, and then resting at the pokecenter in hopes of him turning up, Barry was still nowhere to be found. After an hour of sitting there, Dawn became convinced that he was already in the next town over. Wearily holding her face, she sunk further into her seat cushion. _I shouldn't have given him all that caffeine and sugar this_ morning, she realized;_ it must've gave him an insane boost of energy._

Standing up, anxiously, and then settling down at the pokecenter's corner PC, Dawn logged into her personal account and shakily checked her mail. To her relief, there was still no response yet from her or Barry's parents. Comforted by this, her relief reenergized her. _Maybe,_ she hoped, _our parents haven't even woken up yet... I still have time to search for Fluffy._ There was still hope of getting the hostage situation back under control.

Dawn stopped by the gym one more time, but this time she asked around. To her surprise, the doorman informed her that Barry had already earned his badge and left some time ago.

_Impossible... when did he do all that?_ Dawn wondered, suddenly feeling degraded and abandoned. _He's quick... is Fluffy that much better than me? _Fuming from this insult, it abruptly occurred to her that Barry was no longer her hostage if he was that much stronger than her. _All my threats and aspirations are useless... perhaps our parents are at home laughing and awaiting my defeat– just like you are, Fluffy. Perhaps they already knew that I can't handle you.  
_

–_Isn't that right? _

Stepping up the stairs to Roark, it was then and for the first time that Dawn perceived Barry's declaration of rivalry as a serious thing. _It's like my whole existence is just a big joke– an afterthought to Fluffy– a useless leash that drags behind him, _she thought testily; _But I won't be a joke anymore. Fluffy... You're going NOWHERE._

Sensing the storm behind the girl's eyes, the gym leader curiously welcomed her and introduced himself fully this time around. "I'm Roark," he declared powerfully, "the gym leader! I'm but one trainer who decided to walk proudly with rock-type pokemon!" He suddenly and forcefully pointed at Dawn, glaring at her with challenging severity.

After a bloated moment, Dawn realized that he was waiting for her to introduce herself– and in a similar manner. "I'm a pokemon trainer... Dawn," she finally answered. "What kind of trainer I am among others is unknown. I just began, so I walk with only two pokemon." Shuffling her coat pocket indifferently after this, she then added: "If you're a good judge, though, try us out and compare. ...I won't disappoint."

Roark, amused by her coolness, chuckled intently. "As the gym leader, I do need to see your potential as a trainer." Reaching into his right cargo pant pocket, he retrieved a pokeball. "And," he said; "I'll need to see the toughness of the pokemon that battle with you!" Throwing down the pokeball, he saluted, and immediately sent a serious-looking Geodude charging into battle.

_I switched my line-up for this,_ Dawn thought;_ because of something I once heard on Rowan's TV show..._ _hope I remembered it right._ Pulling the top-most pokeball from her pocket, Dawn pitched it down and slid back on her feet. "Go!" she yelled; "Snover!" _Send out the weaker first... that's how you get stronger._

Lurching into battle– Snover– as mouthless as ever, swung his bough-like arms to make them groan and creak in compensation. Shifting his wooden green eyes up, he solemnly stared at the ceiling, welcoming the sudden hail which violently rained down in his presence and swirled through the already cold gym.

"Whoa-ho," Roark cried, holding onto his hardhat and flinching at the indoor storm. "This ice... Unbelievable! Geodude, get this guy, quick! Rock Throw!"

"Go, Snover–" Dawn urged, "–Razor Leaf!"

Being the faster one, Snover moved in and whipped his boughs, shooting razor-sharp pine needles straight at Geodude. Rending pebbles off the shocked rock pokemon's face, the needles proved super-effective, instantly fainting him. Snover rumbled in victory.

"Come on out, Onix!" Roark blurted, smashing down his next pokeball. Onix's long body plunged in onto the scene, and he stretched up so high, that he nearly raked the ceiling. "Rock Throw!"

Nodding his head dutifully, Onix moved around the platform, looking for the perfect angle to strike. Despite his gigantic size and limited space, Onix slithered circles around Snover; and despite being buffeted by the raging hail, he slammed his tail effortlessly and lobbed a huge boulder smack at Snover, forcing Dawn to whirl away from the boulder's rebound path.

Roark flippantly laughed at her unexpected footwork. "You're fast!" he said. "Too bad the same can't be said for your Snover!"

Snover's trunk groaned– doubled over from the hit– and Dawn, glaring unforgivingly at Roark, ran to her pokemon. "Hold in there–" she said, tightly hugging Snover from behind and straightening him out; "Onix is coming back around, so get ready." Letting go, she backed away from him and signaled forward. "Razor Leaf!"

As Onix slithered back around, Snover stood in his path and stopped. Whipping his boughs once more, Snover launched razor-sharp pine needles, piercing Onix's rocky body dead-on and tumultuously toppling him over like a tower of bricks.

"Snover, switch out! Come back!" Dawn recalled him through his blistering hail storm. Switching to her last pokeball, she pelted it forward. "Go! Pringles!"

Beating her wings and trilling, the steadfast little Piplup emerged on the battlefield and soulfully stared ahead.

Visibly agitated, Roark sharply threw down his last pokeball and released Cranidos– a tiny, dome-headed dinosaur pokemon. Hunching over, Cranidos growled, scratching his clawed feet on the stone floor and readying himself to attack.

"Think you can take down the next pokemon like you did earlier?" Roark blasted, instilling Dawn with a brief flicker of doubt.

Ignoring him, she incited Pringles to attack. "Bubble!" Dawn shouted, holding against the chill wind and hail which continually pitted against their skins.

Pringles, painfully bearing this blasting hail, did her best to prepare her attack, but was instead out-maneuvered by the relentless and agile Cranidos. Attacking her with Pursuit, he threw Pringles into a corner, panicking Dawn into running over and dousing her with potion. Not slowing down, Cranidos shot Pringles a glaring Leer and frightened her into dropping her defense.

"Bubble again–" Dawn shouted once more, rushing aside and breathlessly watching as Pringles opened her tiny yellow beak and spewed out a floating stream of glossy bubbles.

The hail raged on, and Roark, knowing that his Cranidos had lost major health, jumped in to cheer him on. "No way!" the gym leader growled; "Not yet! Not giving up!" He encouraged Cranidos to fight on: "It's time to use your strongest move– the move that uses your iron-hard head to its fullest advantage!" He pointed ahead in declaration. "Cranidos, Headbutt attack!"

Lowering his dome, Cranidos forged ahead, ramming it right into Pringles and bowling her over. Trilling and rolling, Pringles flopped to a stop, and using her wings to prop herself up, raised herself back onto her feet. Gasping and huffing, she puffed out her feathery chest with power and stood firmly through the razing wind.

Dawn, watching the exhausted but scrupulous Pipup, filled with shared determination. "Once more–" Dawn stepped supportively behind her "–Bubble!"

Letting out a drastic shrill, Pringles plodded forward and blasted Cranidos with a final, spiraling stream of bubbles. Battered by the oddly super-charged attack, Cranidos screeched and roared, stomping and fighting to stay where he was. As the last bubble struck, though, his legs gave out and he fell over– fainted.

"W-what?" Roark roared incredulously; "That's can't be! My buffed-up pokemon!"

Bringing the battle to a close, the hail storm died down, leaving behind its tiny ice stones to melt into puddles.

Dawn, bending down over the exhausted Pringles, petted the pokemon's puffy head. "You did it," Dawn told her, smiling as Pringles closed her eyes and leaned gently into each pet. Recalling the Piplup, Dawn stood up and confronted Roark, whom she silently handed her empty badge case to.

"This is embarrassing... I went and lost to a trainer who didn't have a single gym badge..." Roark sighed, examining the bare badge case. "But that's tough. You were strong and I was weak. That's all there is." Reaching into his left cargo pants pocket, he retrieved a shining button-like object. "According to Pokémon League rules, I have to give you our Gym Badge since you've beaten me, the Leader. Here's your official Pokémon League Coal Badge." He placed it in her case and offered it back. "Having that means that your pokemon are strong enough to safely use Rock Smash outside of battle."

Taking it in hand, Dawn held the case carefully and quietly observed Roark. _It's none of my business... _she reminded herself, still remembering the argument that he had had with his father, and the despairing way in which he smashed that cave boulder.

"You should also take this, too," he said, handing her a disc. "It's not Rock Smash, but Stealth Rock. It's a move that inflicts damage on foes who switch into battle. It's a technique machine, so it'll break after one use. Make sure you're certain before using it."

Hearing this, and certain that he was done speaking with her, Dawn turned to leave– but was stopped when Roark suddenly called out to her.

"Wait," he said. "You overheard us, didn't you? You must be curious."

_Is he trying to get me to admit to my offense?_ she wondered; _well, if he is, I guess I owe it to him. It was rude for me to eavesdrop._ Turning aside, she blankly stared at him. "... Sorry," she emitted. "I didn't mean to."

Roark lowered his head. "No. I'm sorry for making you feel awkward about it," he said. "And for taking my anger out on you in our battle earlier. I owe an explanation."

Not sure of what to say, Dawn simply nodded and looked down at her feet.

"It's weird, but our battle just now brought back some memories," Roark said, looking ahead and ignoring her silence; "My mother was a powerful ice-type trainer. Sometimes, she would make it snow here..."

Curious, Dawn looked up into his daydreaming face and found that his strong and dynamic nature was gone and replaced with faint melancholy.

"My dad and mom didn't get along very well," Roark said, "They would have arguments all the time, putting me in the middle." Pausing, he adjusted his hat before continuing. "One day, though, my mom got fed up and left him. When he searched for her, he found out that she found someone else... and had bore a new son. When my dad looks at me, he's probably reminded of all that."

Dawn bit her lip and slunk her shoulders low. "That's... sad," she uttered, wholly depressed for him.

"Hey, that's life!" Roark perked up, trying to brighten her mood. "I just have to work extra hard to prove my dad wrong! Though that argument earlier didn't help... but he's a tough guy, so he'll forget what I said to him! Hopefully."

"Still... if you feel guilty, apologize," Dawn said, certain that Roark and his father had left on a terrible note. "Even if he's too proud to admit it, he'll feel better. My dad is like that, too."

"Hm. OK. I'll try it out." Roark grinned. "I'm a bonehead like him, so I'm always in need of such advice. Thanks!"

Saying their farewells, Dawn left, but with the troublesome pangs of guilt dampening her spirit. _Who am I to say such big things? _she wondered dourly; _My parents love each other very much and are still together. I was the one who abandoned them. But... is it wrong? Wanting to find love at my own pace. Escaping. I don't know... I don't really know anything. _Losing herself in her wonderings, she wandered to the edge of town, unaware of where she was going or where she even was. This loss of self-awareness came to an abrupt end when she was forcefully rammed from behind.

_THUD!_

Spinning on her toes, Dawn gasped and fell backwards– a familiar lanky body falling down on top of her.

"Whoops! Dawn!" Barry sung, wrapping his arms around her– supposedly to cushion her fall. "You got the gym badge, huh?" He happily pawed at her back.

"Geh... How'd you know?" Dawn grunted, prying away his wandering arms. _Fluffy, massaging my back won't fix all the damages you've caused it!_

Dancing around her question, he yammered at a difficult-to-understand speed, mentioning television, chocolate soda pop, anchors, Route 207, bicycles, and then double espressos.

"So you've had both coffee and choco soda?" Dawn questioned, effectively holding back her panic.

"Oh yeah! I totally did!" Barry confirmed, shaking his fists and jumping to his feet. "It was incredible! My teeth disintegrated! I felt both my livers explode!"

"Barry... you only have one liver." _Unless you stole an extra from somebody._

"Oh yeah, huh? Just like a kidney!"

Not bothering to correct him again, Dawn stood up and dusted herself off. Barry, however, began revving up to go. "So," he said, jogging in place, "I'm going to Jubilife City. Next stop, the Eterna gym badge! Ten seconds before I dash! Nine–"

"–Wait!" Dawn rushed, holding out her arms to try and stop him. _You can't just go... not when I finally have you back!_

"Bah! Who's got time to count?...!" Motivated by her resistance, Barry gleefully swerved around her, running off into the cavernous expanse of Oreburgh Gate. "Just try to catch me!" his far-off voice taunted.

* * *

Holding a slice of toast in his mouth, Lucas slung the refrigerator door open and rummaged around, grumbling lowly when he realized that there was no milk. Turning around, he found his grandfather sitting at the kitchen table, blithely chugging the whole milk bottle and watching TV with an equally unconcerned Lucia.

"Forget this," Lucas complained, yanking his toast from his mouth and heading for the front door. "I'm going to the lab." _At least there's coffee there..._

Lucia suddenly jumped. "Whaa, two losses in one day!" she exclaimed, still engrossed in the television. "Must stink for that gym leader."

"Hm, quite," her grandfather responded.

Stopping at the front door, Lucas turned and eyed the TV, his pulse quickening when he saw a Snover on the screen.

"–and Roark hadn't even finished licking his wounds when he was trounced by this SECOND newbie trainer from the SAME town." A news reporter sensationalized over clips and slow-motion playbacks of Snover felling Geodude and Onix. "Could these two kid trainers be dueling it out in a classic rivalry? Will their moves stay THIS hot? We'll be watching them, so find out! We keep an eye on the action. This is The Battle Channel!" When a freeze frame of Dawn and Piplup appeared, alongside one of Barry and Turtwig, Lucas let out an audible gasp.

"What? What is it?" Lucia asked, receiving only reluctant silence from her brother.

"Nothing. Don't worry. I'm going now," he told her, abruptly opening the front door and receiving a face full of cold, dry air. _Dawn and Barry... they made it to Oreburgh quickly,_ Lucas thought, walking across the sandy road to Rowan's lab. _Those two are really serious... They're probably already in Eterna City by now. Well, hopefully. Dawn needs to keep moving if she wants to run away– especially under this much attention..._

Walking into the lab's warm, brightly lit main room, Lucas stopped and cringed when he saw his father– an intimidating stick of a man in horn-rimmed glasses and a white coat– bounding over to him.

"Ah, right on time," the man expressed. "Rowan's gone and we've just received an amazing profusion of data from Dawn's pokedex. Listen, I need you to start compiling it so we can write up more entries. We have a lot of work ahead of us."

"I'll work on it," Lucas said, "and I'll finish more tonight... but I need to meet up with Rowan in Jubilife City soon, because he's carrying back sensitive records from the GTS."

"Lucas."

"Also, I've been waiting for this trip for awhile now, since it's my first opportunity to do field research outside of–"

"–You don't need to do anymore field research," his father cut him off. "I just decided it this morning. You've been making slow pokedex progress in comparison to Dawn, so your efforts in that area are no longer needed."

His father's words, clinical and true, tormented him for that very nature. "So? I like doing it." Lucas spat, his anger rising.

His father stared at him disapprovingly. "Take advantage of your youth, Lucas. 'Brave' and 'strong' trainers of your age are everywhere, but you'd be hard-pressed to find one as bright as you are. So let your talents shine where they were meant, and leave the dirty work to others."

"What's so dirty about that kind of work?" Lucas blurted. "Do you think it's nothing special? Dawn just started, and she's phenomenal. That's why you're making me quit, right?" He felt strongly about her successes, and with an intense love and hate that looped back into envy.

Dawn– who was gifted with the braveness and necessity to run away– had abandoned everything safe, comfortable, and certain just for her independence. She fought and deceived to do things her own way; to do what she felt was right, and all while showing the same shy indifference that Lucas had noticed when they'd first met. _Yet here I am, stooping to my father's commands. The assistant of an assistant, _he thought bitterly; _I could whine and cry about how unfair things are, but the fact is... I'm too cowardly to change my future. _

"Dawn," the man began, balking at his son's resistance, "is talented in that area because she doesn't have many responsibilities or mature things to worry about... She has time to spare and devote to such a task."

For the first time ever, Lucas realized that his father's words were erroneous in addition to being detached and offensive. "You... you grossly underestimate EVERYONE around you," Lucas finally said, glaring at him. With that, the boy turned and ran out the door– bolting down the street and up the same route that Dawn had left in the cold, early morning hours only a brief rest and a dream ago.

From now on, Lucas determined, dreams would no longer be the place where he found an outlet to his wishes.

_~To be continued...~_

* * *

**Awesome Dawn, Barry, and Lucas fan art of the week:**

**pixiv.*net/*member_illust.*php?mode=medium&illust_id=15344381**

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**Thanks for reading– and reviewing! I didn't realize that people liked this story as much as IILOP, so I'll work harder on updating it more often. C:  
**


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